Renting out a second home or other property can be a great way to make some extra income, but you should always protect yourself and the other party by signing a lease agreement or rental contract. If handling rental homes isn't your primary business, you may not have an attorney on hand to help draft the lease. While it's always smart to seek out legal advice if you're not sure of your rights, you can save hundreds of dollars by using one of the standard lease agreements that can be found online or in many retail outlets.
If you're looking for a quick and easy way to put together a lease agreement, shopping at your local big box office supply store might be exactly what you need. Both Office Depot and Staples carry a wide variety of standard boilerplate legal forms that have been vetted in a variety of courts and proven to protect the signing parties. With a quick stroll down an aisle or two, you can find already-printed copies of virtually any lease form you want, including:
If you prefer to avoid the crowds, you can find lease agreements on a wide variety of websites, all free to print out and use.
LawDepot.com has a long list of lease agreement forms for free, including those for houses, apartments, condos, mobile homes, single rooms, basements and others. Answer just a few questions and, in about five minutes, you'll have a custom lease agreement created just for your property and circumstances. Once you're happy with the information, you can print out your lease for free.
LegalTemplates.net not only offers standard rental forms for real estate, they include a comprehensive list of questions and answers helpful for those just starting out with rental property. If you're not secure in all your legal information, the mini-class on this site will give you a good basic education in landlord/tenant relations.
RocketLawyer allows you to build a custom lease agreement, including a long list of individualized details such as access to pools or gyms, responsibility for utility payments or alternate payment schedules. Like other sites online, once you create your custom rental contract, all you need to do is print out multiple copies and meet with your prospective tenant for signing.
You need just as much legal protection when you rent out your equipment and other personal property as you do when becoming a landlord. Whether you're running a boat rental business on a lake or leasing garden equipment to local gardeners each spring, a rental agreement is important to protect your valuable investments.
Do a search online to find lease agreements for personal property. You'll find pages of forms you can print for free, such as an equipment lease agreement form that covers responsibilities for both parties, financial details and a wide variety of circumstances for renting out equipment. Print out the form, have both parties sign it and make sure each of you has an original signed copy for your protection.