Standard Residential Lease Agreement
This Standard Residential Lease Agreement(this “Agreement”) is entered into by and between the Landlord and the Tenantidentified below (each, a “Party,” and collectively, the “Parties”). In consideration of the mutual covenants set forth below, the Parties agree as follows:
1. The Parties
Landlord
Tenant
2. Property
3. Lease Term
4. Rent
5. Late Fee
6. Returned Payment (NSF) Fee
7. Security Deposit
8. Move-In Inspection
9. Pets
10. Smoking Policy
11. Renter's Insurance
12. Subletting & Assignment
13. Notices & Access
14. Governing Law
15. Entire Agreement
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Parties have executed this Agreement as of the date first written above.
Landlord:
Tenant:
What is a residential lease agreement?
A residential lease agreement is the contract between a landlord and a tenant for a home, apartment, or room. It sets the terms both sides are agreeing to live by: how much rent is due and when, how long the tenancy lasts, who holds the security deposit and under what conditions it comes back, whether pets are allowed, who pays which utilities, and how much notice each side must give. Once signed, it is a binding contract — which is exactly why a clear, complete, written lease protects both parties far better than a handshake or a one-paragraph note.
A good lease prevents disputes rather than winning them. Most landlord–tenant conflicts trace back to something the agreement never addressed: a late-fee amount that was never stated, a guest who became a roommate, a deposit deduction the tenant never saw coming. The builder above walks through each of those clauses in plain English so nothing important is left unsaid.
Fixed-term or month-to-month?
The builder creates both kinds of tenancy — switch between them with a single toggle, and the document retitles and rewrites itself accordingly.
- A fixed-term lease (commonly one year) locks in the rent and the tenancy for a set period. Neither side can walk away early without consequences, which gives the tenant price stability and the landlord a predictable occupancy.
- A month-to-month rental agreement renews automatically each month until either party gives written notice — typically 30 days, though several states set their own notice periods. It trades stability for flexibility, and it's the usual choice for rooms, short stays, and tenancies continuing after a lease expires.
What the lease covers
The generated document is a complete, conventionally structured agreement — the same numbered-section format property managers and courts are used to reading. Depending on your answers it includes:
- Rent amount, due date, grace period, and late fees — plus prorated rent for a mid-month move-in
- Security deposit amount and the conditions for its return
- Occupants, multiple tenants, and co-signers/guarantors
- Pet terms, including pet deposits or pet rent
- Utilities and services, split between landlord and tenant
- Parking, smoking policy, and property-specific rules
- Landlord entry notice, maintenance responsibilities, and default terms
- The federal lead-based paint disclosure for homes built before 1978, generated as its own attachment
State rules matter for leases
Landlord–tenant law is state law. Security-deposit caps, how fast a deposit must be returned, required disclosures, and month-to-month notice periods all differ from state to state. Each state page summarizes the local rules and opens the builder ready to go:
- Arizona
- California
- Florida
- Georgia
- Illinois
- Michigan
- New Jersey
- New York
- North Carolina
- Ohio
- Pennsylvania
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Virginia
- Washington
Pages for all 50 states and Washington D.C. are linked from the homepage directory. Your draft saves automatically in your browser while you work, and the finished PDF downloads free — no signup, no watermark.