You’ve found the perfect house to rent, you get along well with the landlord, and you’re about to sign the paperwork. Hold it a second and read on before you scrawl that signature — you could be signing yourself on for months or even a year’s worth of trouble!
Rental contracts may all seem the same, but renting a house is decidedly different than renting an apartment or other residence. Read the agreement carefully, and watch out for the following in particular:
- Yard care responsibilities. Read and see who is responsible for the upkeep of the lawn and yard. Most often homes for rent expect you to maintain the lawn and yard, including lawnmowing, snow shoveling and autumn leaf-raking, so don’t agree to that if you don’t think you’re up to it. Alternately, you can hire someone to care for the yard for you
- Privacy. Check the rental contract carefully to see if the landlord is allowed to enter the home without your permission, or if they have written it into the contract that you have a right to privacy. Since the home is not your property, landlords can enter unannounced if the contract says so.
- Appliance maintenance. Read to see if you or the landlord is responsible for maintaining the fridge, washer and dryer, dishwasher and any other large appliances in the house. If the responsibility falls on you, you must pay to repair these if they break!
- Existing damage. Do a walkthrough right away. Document any existing damage with photos and a written list to prevent losing some or all of your deposit later if the landlord believes thatyou caused that damage.
