What is a lease agreement?
A lease agreement is a legal contract between a landlord and a tenant that sets the terms for renting a property: how long, for how much, and under what rules. It binds both sides: the tenant gets the right to occupy the property, and the landlord gets rent and a written record of the obligations both parties agreed to.
A "rental agreement" and a "lease" describe the same thing, though people often use "lease" for a fixed term (say, one year) and "rental agreement" for a month-to-month tenancy that renews until someone ends it.
When do you need one?
Renting out a house, apartment, condo, or single room
Converting a handshake or month-to-month arrangement into something enforceable
Renting to a family member and wanting it documented properly
Leasing commercial space, equipment, storage, or a parking space
Any time you want the rent, deposit, and responsibilities in writing before keys change hands
Types of leases
The right lease depends on the property and the arrangement:
Standard fixed-term: a set term, usually one year, the most common residential lease.
Month-to-month: renews automatically until either side gives notice, useful for flexibility.
Room or roommate: rents a single room, or sets the terms among co-tenants.
Sublease: an existing tenant rents to someone else while the original lease stays in force.
Commercial: for business space, with very different terms from a residential lease.
Specialty: storage, parking, equipment, vacation, and similar short or single-purpose rentals.
What a lease should include
A complete lease answers the core questions and adds the disclosures your state requires. State-specific versions build in the deposit limits, notice periods, and disclosure forms your law actually demands.
Who: the landlord, every adult tenant, and how to reach each party
What: the address and a description of the premises being rented
How long: the start and end dates, or that it renews month to month
How much: the rent, when it is due, the late fee, and the security deposit
The rules: pets, utilities, maintenance, entry notice, and subletting
Disclosures and signatures: lead-based paint and any state disclosures, then both parties sign
How to write a lease agreement
Name the parties and the premises, set the term, state the rent, due date, deposit, and late fee, spell out the house rules, and attach the disclosures your state and federal law require, then both parties sign. DocsGenie prompts you for each field in plain language and formats it into your state's accepted lease, so nothing gets missed.
Tip: Give the tenant a signed copy and keep one yourself. If a dispute over rent or the deposit comes up later, the signed lease is the record that settles it.
Screening tenants without violating fair housing law
A rental application, credit check, background check, and income/reference verification are standard and generally legal, but the screening criteria have to be applied consistently to every applicant.
Setting a minimum credit score, income requirement, or rental-history standard is fine as long as it's the same standard for everyone. Changing the bar based on an applicant's race, religion, sex, national origin, disability, or familial status (having children) violates the federal Fair Housing Act.
Many states and cities add their own protected categories, such as source of income (including housing vouchers), sexual orientation, or gender identity, so check local law before finalizing your screening criteria.
Document your standard criteria in writing and apply them the same way to every applicant; that consistency is your best protection if a screening decision is ever challenged.
Security deposits: caps, holding, and return
Security deposits are one of the most regulated parts of a lease. Most states cap the deposit at one or two months' rent, though some set no limit at all.
They also control how you hold it (sometimes in a separate or interest-bearing account), how quickly you must return it after move-out (often 14 to 45 days), and that you give the tenant an itemized list of any deductions.
Getting this wrong is a common source of penalties, so set your deposit to your state's rule. The deposit and landlord-tenant table below lists the cap, statute, return deadline, and entry notice for every state.
What disclosures are required?
Federal law requires a lead-based paint disclosure for any home built before 1978, under the Lead-Based Paint Disclosure Rule (Section 1018 of Title X), jointly enforced by the EPA and HUD. On top of that, most states add their own: who manages the property, where the deposit is held, and specific hazards like mold, bedbugs, or flood zones. The tables below and each state page show exactly what your state requires.
The laws that apply
Renting is governed by a mix of federal and state law:
Fair Housing Act bars discrimination in renting based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, and familial status.
State landlord-tenant acts, many based on the Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act (URLTA), set deposit limits, notice periods, and each side's duties.
Implied warranty of habitability requires landlords to keep the unit livable and in repair.
Security-deposit statutes control the cap, holding, and return timeline, listed by state below.
Entry-notice rules require advance notice, commonly 24 to 48 hours, before a landlord enters.
Federal lead-based paint disclosure (Title X) is required for housing built before 1978.
Ending, renewing, and month-to-month conversion
A fixed-term lease simply ends on its stated end date unless the lease itself says it converts to month-to-month or auto-renews, so read that clause closely before assuming either side has to act.
A month-to-month lease, by contrast, keeps renewing until someone gives notice, typically 30 days, though some states require more and local rent-control or just-cause eviction ordinances can limit a landlord's ability to end a tenancy even with notice.
If you want the lease to auto-renew, say so explicitly and state the notice either side must give to opt out; if you don't want it to auto-renew, say that too. Silence is what causes disputes at the end of a term.
Common mistakes to avoid
Charging a deposit above your state's legal cap
Missing your state's deadline to return the deposit or itemize deductions
Skipping the federal lead-based paint disclosure on an older home
Using a generic form that ignores your state's notice and deposit rules
Not documenting the property's condition at move-in
Entering the unit without the notice your state requires
Leaving out who is responsible for utilities, repairs, and yard care
Applying screening criteria inconsistently between applicants
Leaving the lease silent on whether it auto-renews or converts to month-to-month