A lot of times owners will ask what has to be in the lease and whether it’s possible to find a lease agreement online. I’ve seen templates on the internet and at OfficeMax, and many of those places have good lease agreements. But in Arizona, you have to include a few specific things.
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Property Management Mesa: Clear Lease Language
Your lease must be in clear language. I have seen 20 page leases that make no sense, and these won’t help you. In Arizona, our judges do not like those types of convoluted leases. It confuses them and they don’t want to spend hours dissecting a lease agreement. They will find this to be a good reason to rule against you. If a judge can’t figure it out, then they will bet the tenant had no idea what was being signed. So rule number one is to have a lease in clear language. We have made a practice of creating leases that are easy to read. We condense them to the language that it needs.
Property Management Mesa: Property Ownership and Residence
Your lease needs to be clear about what is offered and who does what. It must disclose who owns the property, and it also needs to list every tenant occupying the home. You also want to know what the terms are, so include the start and end dates in your lease agreement. You don’t want to leave it open-ended. Otherwise, in Arizona, that would default to month to month.
Property Management Mesa: Rent and Restrictions
State how much exactly needs to be paid every month. The rental rate is usually pretty clear, but some landlords charge pet fees or pet rents every month. There may be utility costs included. Anything the tenants need to pay for must be built into the lease and has to be clear. You don’t have to allow pets, and you don’t have to provide appliances. You have to provide electricity, plumbing, heating, and cooling. However, a washer, dryer, and a microwave are all optional.
No smoking is a best practice. We put it in our leases with some other restrictions like no trampolines or above ground pools. Things like that can bring risk to the property and the owner.
If you have any questions about
Mesa property management or your rental property lease agreement, please
contact us at East Valley Property Management.
