From Library Journal
Aimed at owners and managers of residential rental property, this new collection of forms and guidelines is designed to help with the creation of leases, rental agreements, and related documents. The authors' legal advice is accompanied by sound suggestions for managing rental arrangements. Stewart and Warner build the documents from the ground up by defining terms, enumerating issues to consider, offering alternative clauses, and highlighting problem areas. In an especially good discussion of choosing tenants, readers will find counsel on advertising property, checking references, and avoiding discrimination. Forms for consent to background check, rental application, and tenant references complete the discussion. The plentiful tables include references to state laws on security deposits, landlord access to rental property, and lists of states that limit security deposits. An appendix offers tear-away forms that cover a number of common landlord/tenant situations. This book works well with the authors' Every Landlord's Legal Guide (LJ 4/15/96), a comprehensive look at state and federal laws governing landlord-tenant relations. Recommended for most public libraries.?Joan Pedzich, Harris, Beach & Wilcox, Rochester, N.Y.Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Booklist
Binding legal agreements are part of every contemporary American's life, and advice on them can be welcome and valuable. Stewart and Warner provide some in a nicely laid out and well-organized guide mostly for landlords. They explain the renting game clearly and with many sample forms (which may tempt some to use the guide as a workbook, so libraries may want to keep a reference copy for single-use photocopying, at least until subsequent editions--legal advice publisher Nolo updates its wares regularly--come out). They promise to help turn the property holder into a successful landlord with useful advice on such matters as whether to prefer a lease or a rental agreement and changing or ending a tenancy. Since they also describe how to avoid illegal discrimination, renters may find the book well worth perusing, too. Indeed, the good overview they afford of all the legal ins, outs, ups, and downs of the landlord-tenant relationship might be the spur that goads balky readers to buy rather than rent. Mike Tribby


Robert Bruss, nationally syndicated columnist
On my scale of one to 10, this excellent book rates a solid 10.


Library Journal
A comprehensive look at state and federal laws governing landlord-tenant relations. Recommended...


Book Description
Here's a quick and easy way for landlords to create the key documents necessary for owning or managing rental property, including a legally valid lease and rental agreement. With this bestselling guide, you'll learn how to: *prepare a month-to-month rental agreement or lease tailored to meet your business needs and state laws *make legally required disclosures *comply with laws covering key issues such as security deposits, privacy rules, discrimination and more *conduct a thorough check of tenant references and credit *get the tenant moved in and inspect the condition of the rental unit *modify a signed rental agreement or lease Leases & Rental Agreements includes tear-out forms (plus step-by-step instructions to fill them out), including a rental agreement, lease, rental application and more. The 5th edition provides updated 50-state legal charts on security deposits, rent rules, access to rental property and more.


Download Description
"Here's a quick and easy way for landlords to create the key documents necessary for owning or managing rental property, including a legally valid lease and rental agreement. With this bestselling guide, you'll learn how to: prepare a month-to-month rental agreement or lease tailored to meet your business needs and state laws make legally required disclosures comply with laws covering key issues such as security deposits, privacy rules, discrimination and more conduct a thorough check of tenant references and credit get the tenant moved in and inspect the condition of the rental unit modify a signed rental agreement or lease Leases & Rental Agreements includes tear-out forms (plus step-by-step instructions to fill them out), including a rental agreement, lease, rental application and more. The 5th edition provides updated 50-state legal charts on security deposits, rent rules, access to rental property and more. "


About the Author
Marcia Stewart brings her background in writing and editing on consumer issues to her job as a legal editor at Nolo Press. She is an expert on landlord-tenant law, buying and selling houses, and other issues of interest to consumers. She is the co-author of Every Landlord's Legal Guide, Leases and Rental Agreements and Renters' Rights, and the editor of Nolo's LeaseWriter software for landords. Marcia received a Master's degree in Public Policy from the University of California at Berkeley and has written and edited a wide variety of consumer publications for government agencies and private businesses. Ralph Warner is a co-founder and e-publisher of Nolo.com and one of the pioneers of the self-help law movement. A graduate of Princeton University and the Boalt School of Law (U.C. Berkeley), he is the author of many books and articles aimed at making our legal system more accessible and democratic. Janet Portman, an attorney and Nolo editor, received undergraduate and graduate degrees from Stanford and a law degree from the University of Santa Clara. She is an expert on landlord-tenant law and co-author of Every Landlord's Legal Guide, Every Tenant's Legal Guide and Renters' Rights. As an attorney, she specialized in criminal defense, conducting trials and preparing and arguing appeals before the Court of Appeal and the California Supreme Court. Janet is the editor of several Nolo books, including Legal Research: How to Find and Understand the Law and How to Seal Your Juvenile and Criminal Records.

SYNOPSIS

Here￯﾿ﾽs a quick and easy way for landlords to create the key documents necessary for owning or managing rental property, including a legally valid lease and rental agreement. With this bestselling guide, you￯﾿ﾽll learn how to: *prepare a month-to-month rental agreement or lease tailored to meet your business needs and state laws *make legally required disclosures *comply with laws covering key issues such as security deposits, privacy rules, discrimination and more *conduct a thorough check of tenant references and credit *get the tenant moved in and inspect the condition of the rental unit *modify a signed rental agreement or lease  Leases & Rental Agreements includes tear-out forms (plus step-by-step instructions to fill them out), including a rental agreement, lease, rental application and more. The 5th edition provides updated 50-state legal charts on security deposits, rent rules, access to rental property and more.

About the Authors:

Marcia Stewart brings her background in writing and editing on consumer issues to her job as a legal editor at Nolo Press. She is an expert on landlord-tenant law, buying and selling houses, and other issues of interest to consumers. She is the co-author of Every Landlord￯﾿ﾽs Legal Guide, Leases and Rental Agreements and Renters￯﾿ﾽ Rights, and the editor of Nolo￯﾿ﾽs LeaseWriter software for landords. Marcia received a Master￯﾿ﾽs degree in Public Policy from the University of California at Berkeley and has written and edited a wide variety of consumer publications for government agencies and private businesses. Ralph Warner is a co-founder and e-publisher of Nolo.com and one of the pioneers of the self-help law movement. A graduate of Princeton University and the Boalt School of Law (U.C. Berkeley), he is the author of many books and articles aimed at making our legal system more accessible and democratic.

Janet Portman, an attorney and Nolo editor, received undergraduate and graduate degrees from Stanford and a law degree from the University of Santa Clara. She is an expert on landlord-tenant law and co-author of Every Landlord￯﾿ﾽs Legal Guide, Every Tenant￯﾿ﾽs Legal Guide and Renters￯﾿ﾽ Rights. As an attorney, she specialized in criminal defense, conducting trials and preparing and arguing appeals before the Court of Appeal and the California Supreme Court. Janet is the editor of several Nolo books, including Legal Research: How to Find and Understand the Law and How to Seal Your Juvenile and Criminal Records.

FROM THE CRITICS

Robert Bruss

On my scale of one to 10, this excellent book rates a solid 10.

Library Journal

Aimed at owners and managers of residential rental property, this new collection of forms and guidelines is designed to help with the creation of leases, rental agreements, and related documents. The authors' legal advice is accompanied by sound suggestions for managing rental arrangements. Stewart and Warner build the documents from the ground up by defining terms, enumerating issues to consider, offering alternative clauses, and highlighting problem areas. In an especially good discussion of choosing tenants, readers will find counsel on advertising property, checking references, and avoiding discrimination. Forms for consent to background check, rental application, and tenant references complete the discussion. The plentiful tables include references to state laws on security deposits, landlord access to rental property, and lists of states that limit security deposits. An appendix offers tear-away forms that cover a number of common landlord/tenant situations. This book works well with the authors' Every Landlord's Legal Guide (LJ 4/15/96), a comprehensive look at state and federal laws governing landlord-tenant relations. Recommended for most public libraries.-Joan Pedzich, Harris, Beach & Wilcox, Rochester, N.Y.

Internet Book Watch

Leases & Rental Agreements provides owners of real estate with a quick do-it-yourself handbook for renting out a property, including tear-out legal forms and tips on preparing different types of rental or lease agreements. From making disclosures on hazards to complying with laws covering security deposits and privacy, this provides all the details necessary.

San Diego Union-Tribune

"All the rental forms you'll ever need."

Financial Magazine Kiplingers Personal

"A valuable copendium of musts andmust-nots for landlords that offer legal tips and plenty of practical advice."Read all 6 "From The Critics" >

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING