Hi all,
I've got a small 800 sq.ft. 2 bed/1 bath home in a nice neighorhood (one block away from my residence) in Saint Petersburg, Florida that I want to rent out. I think I have a good renter lined up, now I just need to come up with a residential lease. I am a first time landlord.
Any opinions on how I should draw up a bullet-proof residential lease to protect myself? In this day and age of lawsuit happy people, is it worth hiring an attorney to do it for me? Or, is there a good software program that I could buy that would help me do it myself? Seems like leases can be pretty complicated these days, including "mold addendums", disclosures on lead-based paint hazards, etc. I just want to make sure my rear end is covered if you know what I mean! Thanks in advance for any advice you could share.
I've got a small 800 sq.ft. 2 bed/1 bath home in a nice neighorhood (one block away from my residence) in Saint Petersburg, Florida that I want to rent out. I think I have a good renter lined up, now I just need to come up with a residential lease. I am a first time landlord.
Any opinions on how I should draw up a bullet-proof residential lease to protect myself? In this day and age of lawsuit happy people, is it worth hiring an attorney to do it for me? Or, is there a good software program that I could buy that would help me do it myself? Seems like leases can be pretty complicated these days, including "mold addendums", disclosures on lead-based paint hazards, etc. I just want to make sure my rear end is covered if you know what I mean! Thanks in advance for any advice you could share.