Leases

Steve Scott

Attorney at Law

Serving Landlords, Individuals
and Small Businesses

Vanessa Reynolds

Legal Assistant

Leases

The first line of defense in dealing with problem tenants is having a good written lease. While it is possible to have oral leases of residential units, written leases almost always provide superior protections for landlords. Scott Law Firm will prepare a package containing a lease and related forms upon a landlord's request. We charge a flat fee of $85 to provide the leasing forms in paper format only, or a flat fee of $105 to provide the forms in both paper and electronic formats (these rates are subject to change after December 31, 2008). Forms included in our package include:

	Rental Application
	Resources for Background Checks
	Statement of Credit Denial
	Residential Lease
	Animal Agreement
	Sublease Agreement
	Guarantee of Lease
	Lease Renewal
	Notice of Non-Renewal of Lease
	Lead Paint Disclosure
	Lead Paint Pamphlet
	Security Deposit Guidelines, including inspection notice
	Security Deposit Statement

If you do not elect to have Scott Law Firm prepare leasing forms for you, you should review the lease forms you now use to ensure that your leases include the following minimum points, most of which cannot be adequately addressed in an oral lease:

	Identity of landlord or agent
	Identity of tenant(s) (make clear multiple tenants are "jointly and severally liable")
	Identification of premises leased and items included such as appliances and furnishings, storage space, parking space, etc.
	Beginning and ending dates
	Amount of rent and due date (add late charges and bad check charges if desired)
	Location where rent must be paid
	Amount of security deposit, if any
	Inspection of premises by tenant with notation of existing damage
	Who is permitted to occupy premises
	Permitted activities (residential use only? business activities allowed?)
	Responsibility for utility payments and trash collection
	Responsibility for maintenance, repairs and cleaning
	Prohibit alterations without landlord's consent
	Prohibit assignment or subleasing without landlord's consent
	Non-liability and indemnification of landlord for injuries to tenants and tenants' property
	Provisions for termination of tenancy
	Payment of attorney's fees, litigation expenses and court costs (IMPORTANT NOTE: You will not be able to obtain a judgment for attorney's fees and litigation expenses if you do not have a clause in a written lease requiring the tenant to pay them.)
	All amounts owed under lease, including payments by landlord for tenant, are "additional rent" – this may allow remedies the same as for non-payment of rent Incorporate rules and regulations and lease application.
	Waive common-law notice requirements for forfeiture
	Waive jury trial and establish venue (court location) for lawsuits.

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Inquiries about legal representation and comments about this web site may be emailed to sscott@scottlawfirm.com. We will endeavor to respond promptly but will not provide specific legal advice by email except to established clients. Please see our Notices and Disclaimers. Except as otherwise noted on particular pages, this entire web site is Copyright © 1998-2007 by Scott Law Firm Professional Corporation, Columbia, Missouri, U.S.A. Except as otherwise authorized with respect to landlord forms, site visitors may reproduce materials on this site for personal use only. All copies of copyrighted pages must include our copyright notice.