Your Rental Agreements: Verbal or Written

Your rental agreement is the legal contract between you and your landlord. However, sometimes rental agreements may be verbal as opposed to written. Generally speaking, it isn’t a good idea to have a verbal agreement. If there is ever a discrepancy or if an issue arises, it is impossible to prove who said what if the rental agreement is only verbal. If you are in a rental situation that is currently a verbal agreement, it is strongly recommended that you put that agreement in writing and have both parties sign it as soon as possible.

Your rental agreements is crucially important to your rental experience. There are simply too many areas that are covered in a rental agreement for it to be left to a verbal arrangement. There are sufficient areas of concern that arise with a written contract, let alone a verbal one. In a court of law, a tenant could essentially lose their case due to the fact that they had a verbal agreement and therefore had no proof of any arrangements that had been made.

If you have a verbal arrangement and feel that your landlord is not living up to his or her end, it is important to realize that your landlord may not be deliberately defaulting on your verbal agreement. He or she may sincerely remember the terms of the arrangement differently then you do. This is why it is crucial to put everything in writing. In fact, it is a good idea to continually put arrangements and agreements in writing to protect both you and the landlord. There are a number of areas that may cause conflict when renting a property and addressing these issues as they arise in writing makes the most sense for both parties. Some of the issues that need to be addressed include:

• How much rent to pay
• What forms of payment are accepted
• Where to send the payment
• Who will pay for utilities
• How much will the security deposit be
• Are you allowed to have pets
• How long may you have guests visit for
• What is the Maximum Occupancy
• How will repairs be handled

As you can see, a verbal agreement may leave room for confusion. Suppose the landlord states that you can move in without paying a security deposit as long as you clean up the residence from the past tenants. Once you move in you notice damage that was in existence when you moved in. You bring it up to your landlord, and he or she states that it is your responsibility to repair the damage since you moved in without a security deposit. There is essentially nothing you can do to prove your case in court. Making sure that your arrangement is in writing and signed by both parties is the safest way to ensure that your rights are and remain protected throughout your tenancy. It is also important to stop and ask yourself why your landlord would not want to put the agreement in writing. If a landlord refuses to sign a written rental agreement, you may want to reconsider renting from him or her.