Rental Documents Every Landlord Should Keep

Landlords have plenty on their plate, especially considering being a landlord most likely isn’t their full-time job. Between finding great tenants, avoiding evictions, and making sure leaky faucets get fixed in a timely fashion, it can sometimes feel like there’s a never-ending list of tasks to complete.

Keeping your rental documents organized is key to promoting a great landlord-tenant relationship and can help ensure your rental business runs smoothly.

Staying organized and keeping the right records on file can help landlords:

• Better protect against legal issues
  
• Deal with tax responsibilities
  
• Promote transparency between landlord and protect against litigation

1. Rental Application

Your rental application is designed to inform you of a prospective tenant’s qualifications and is often used as a first step to qualify or deny an applicant. Requiring a rental application can reduce the risk of placing the wrong tenant in your unit.

The typical rental application covers:

• Contact information
• References
• Current and previous residence information
• Employment history
• Proof of income
• Authorization to pull a credit report and criminal record
  

2. Screening Process

After collecting rental applications, you’ll need to screen your prospective tenants. More than 95% of landlords believe tenant screening is beneficial and helps them get a higher-quality tenant into their rental unit.

3. Lease/Rental Agreements

A document that a tenant can occupy a property for a specified period of time. It also defines the rights and responsibilities of both landlord and tenant. As noted earlier, the lease can be your ally when it comes to future litigation or tenant disputes.

Rental terms may vary, but should generally include the following:

• Your role, duty, and rights as a landlord
• Tenant’s responsibilities and rights
• Dates and terms of the lease
• Protection of property and tenant accountability
• Payment terms, including when rent is due and how to pay it
• Outline of the eviction process
  

4. Pet Agreement

If you decide to make your rental property pet-friendly, then it’s wise to have a documented pet policy on file. Tenants should be required to sign this landlord document, which may include the need for an additional pet deposit, pet rent, or expected pet owner responsibilities.

5. Welcome Letter

A welcome letter is a friendly greeting for your tenant that is also rich with information.

It may explain details such as:

• How to set up utilities
• How to get renter’s insurance
• How to pick up keys
• How to use laundry unit/room

It may be simple, but this rental document can help ease the transition for your tenant and will go a long way for your landlord-tenant relationship.

6. Checklists For Moving In

A move-in checklist helps you keep track of the condition of your property and holds your tenants accountable for any damage that occurs while they live there. Without the checklist, it’ll be your word against theirs after move-out.

This rental document also provides peace of mind for tenants, as it assures you won’t charge for damages for which they weren’t responsible.

7. Renewal Paperwork

Lease renewals can help landlords save time and money and offer many benefits to a seamless renewal process, including:

• Eliminating the cost of finding new tenants
• Reducing the risk of vacancy
• Reducing the risk of an incompatible tenant moving in
• Keeping a tenant already familiar with lease terms

Be proactive with your renewals and ask your tenant 90 days in advance whether they wish to renew the lease.

8. Move Out Letter

If your tenant plans to vacate the property, you’ll want to send a move-out letter about a month before the lease ends. This landlord document is beneficial because it sets expectations for tenants, such as their responsibilities before vacating the property and the next steps for returning the security deposit.

9. Move Out Checklist

A tenant move-out checklist can help spell out a tenant’s responsibility when vacating your rental property. Consider attaching this checklist to the lease agreement because if your tenant understands the expectations upon move-in, they can better accomplish each requirement.

10. Correspondence

Within your rental documents file, keep track of correspondence with tenants from the moment they apply until the moment they move out.

This may include:

• Email chains
• Texts messages
• Dated notes from telephone/in-person conversations

Should you ever need to contest a conversation, having these detailed records on file could help protect you.

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