Updated November 6, 2020:

A corporate housing lease agreement is a contract that can be used when renting a corporate house or apartment. When drafting such an agreement, there is a variety of information that should be included, such as how long the contract will be and the amount of lease payments.

What Are Lease Agreements?

If you own a piece of property and want to rent it out to a tenant, he or she should sign a lease agreement. A lease agreement is a type of contract and is most commonly used by property management companies.

Most property managers or owners will use a lease agreement template, as every tenant will need to sign this document. There are several different types of lease agreement templates available online, and you can also draft a lease agreement with the help of an attorney.

Your lease agreement will likely need to include specific information related to the property you are renting. If you plan to use a template, you should have the document reviewed by your attorney to make sure that it includes the right information. Spending money on an attorney will be well worth it if you're able to protect yourself from future contract disputes or broken agreements.

Tips For Renting Your Property

Before renting corporate housing to a tenant, there are several steps that you need to take. First, you should have your potential renter fill out and submit a rental application. If you approve the application, you will need to provide your new tenant with a variety of documentation, including:

  • Booking confirmation.
  • A rental agreement.
  • An invoice for their first payment.
  • Your property's pet policy, if you have one.

The most important of these documents is the rental agreement, which will tell your tenant the rules for living on your property and will let them know what services, if any, you will provide. A firm rental agreement can help your tenant feel comfortable moving into your property. You should only accept payment from your tenant after they have signed the rental agreement. A variety of local and state laws may apply to your rental agreement, so you should have your attorney review the agreement to make sure that it is legal. Your agreement may also need to include specific terms based on the location of your property.

Information to Include in Your Lease Agreement

Drafting a corporate housing lease agreement is a very delicate process. You should be sure that you're including the correct information so that the document will be legally binding. When writing your agreement, you should dedicate the first section to information about the tenant and include their reservation number and contact information.

Next, you will need a section that describes the corporate rental property. In addition to the address and phone number of the property, you should describe the tenant's parking access and how many bathrooms and bedrooms the unit contains.

The rental information section of your lease agreement will describe some basic terms of the lease, including:

  • When the tenant will arrive and when they will leave. You must give your tenant 30 days' notice prior to their departure date.
  • A check-in and check-out time.
  • Policy on extending the lease agreement, if applicable.
  • The deposit amount required to reserve the rental.
  • How much maid service costs, if it is available.
  • The renter's monthly rate.
  • The departure fee, if one is required.
  • The pet policy and the fee for keeping pets in the rental.

One of the most important sections of your rental agreement will describe when rental payments are due. You could require, for example, that the tenant make their first rental payment before arriving at the property, and that subsequent payments will be due on the first of every month. You can also require penalty fees for late payments.

When renting corporate housing to a tenant, you may want to require tenants to reserve the rental with a credit card and provide a corporate letter of responsibility. If you require a deposit fee, you should describe circumstances in which you would be allowed to retain the fee, including damage to the rental unit.

If you need help drafting a corporate housing lease agreement, you can post your legal needs on UpCounsel's marketplace. UpCounsel accepts only the top 5 percent of lawyers to its site. Lawyers on UpCounsel come from law schools such as Harvard Law and Yale Law and average 14 years of legal experience, including work with or on behalf of companies like Google, Menlo Ventures, and Airbnb.