Business Law 101 / Leases

By Albert L. Kelley, Esq.

Every Landlord-Tenant matter starts with the Lease. Every rental requires some form of agreement. Residential leases may be in writing or they may be verbal; basic or complex. Commercial leases generally are written and tend to be more complex than residential leases as the commercial landlord-tenant statutes are less detailed. If the residential lease is verbal, the necessary terms for the lease, aside from the amount of rent and the dates rent is paid, will be determined by the statutes. This includes maintenance obligations, notice requirements, deposit usage, and even waterbeds. With a written lease, many of the statutes can be bypassed, so that the written lease will be controlling. A verbal lease can be easier to terminate, but a written lease can provide more control and less obligation to the landlord. So what terms do we need in a lease? The general issues are the property, parties, term, rent, deposits, and maintenance obligations.

Property: This is usually pretty easy. Where is the property? If it is in a multi-unit building, which unit is it? If leasing just a room, which room is it? Does it include the yard? What about storage sheds? Does it include common areas? If the property being leased is complex enough that it needs an explanation, it should be in writing. This includes when the lease is for only a portion of the property. So if the landlord is leasing part of a duplex the unit should be specified. Also, if the tenant is only leasing the interior of the building it should be written (with most multi-unit buildings, the tenant only gets he interior walls and the landlord reserves the exterior walls). In some situations, the tenant is only leasing the building, and not the grounds. In each of these situations, the failure to specify the parcel could lead to litigation. For example, if a landlord leases a bedroom to a tenant, but does not specify that in writing, the tenant could claim that they had leased the entire house. Even with a written lease this could occur if the lease does not specify that it is only for a portion of the property.

Parties: This is not always as it seems. Usually the property owner is the Landlord, but sometimes the Landlord is an agent of the property owner or even a tenant of the property owner. If the property owner is a corporation, the lease may be signed by an officer or director or manager of the company, but the Landlord would be the company, not the individual. The Tenant is also not always evident. Although the landlord may negotiate with just one person, there can be others residing in the property. If the main tenants have children, they are also considered tenants. In a verbal lease, pretty much anyone living in the property is a tenant. While the landlord may claim they only rented to a specific person, they cannot get rid of other persons unless they go through the eviction process. With a written lease, the landlord can specify that only those people identified in the lease are tenants; all others are guests of the tenant and thus not entitled to the same protections a tenant would receive.

I will discuss the other issues in the next columns.

Al Kelley is a Florida business law attorney located in Key West and previously taught business law, personnel law and labor law at St. Leo University. He is also the author of “Basics of Business Law” “Basics of Florida’s Small Claims Court” and “Basics of Florida’s Landlord-Tenant Law” (Absolutely Amazing e-Books). This article is being offered as a public service and is not intended to provide specific legal advice. If you have any questions about legal issues, you should confer with a licensed Florida attorney.

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