A few decades ago, property managers and tenants would have to meet up in person as opposed to processing the rental agreement online. Well, all that has now changed. Most of the real estate and property managers have already adopted eSignature for rental agreement signing and are enjoying the convenience of going digital.
What’s a rental agreement, and what should it contain?
A rental lease agreement defines the contract between a tenant and the property manager/agent when a property is being leased. This type of contract is legally binding and is meant to spell out all the expectations and responsibilities between the property manager and the tenant.
A good house rental agreement should capture the following items:
Property Details
This is a critical item that is sometimes ignored by newer property managers. Agents must clarify all the details regarding the rental property itself, from the start.
Usually, this might include the property name, the property owner, and the property address. These details are necessary since they are referred to throughout the agreement.
Rent, deposits, and other payments
Signing a rental contract comes with an agreement to pay deposits, rent, and other related fees. Ensure that your lease document captures this critical information.
Rent is the most known of these costs; however, you should also take into account issues related to security deposits. For instance, should the deposit be prorated according to the move-in date? What penalties should a lease termination attract?
Other items captured in lease agreements include minor things like lockout or door-opening fees, application fees to cater for application processing, and a notice fee for failure to meet mandatory leasing requirements.
Utilities, Maintenance, and Access
Additionally, a rental agreement form should specify who pays for utilities and who can have access to a property.
Some state bylaws insist that maintenance visits should be scheduled, while other states permit property managers and maintenance staff to have a complete right of way. Ensure you capture this in the rental agreement form.
Lease Termination and Move out Dates
Due to unavoidable circumstances, tenants sometimes may be in a hurry to move out without much notice. A lifestyle change like a pregnancy or a marriage or a job offer in a new city might call for an untimely vacancy.
A proper rental agreement should highlight the process of lease termination and related fees as well as when the tenant should expect to receive back their security deposit.
Is Signing a Rental Agreement Online Legal?
Some property managers and agents have doubts when it comes to moving their lease signing process online. Is it safe, legally-binding, and affordable?
As an award-winning and top-rated electronic signature solution provider, we can assure you that all the three fears mentioned above, shouldn’t concern you. In fact, for years now, our Foxit eSign aka eSign Genie software has been used by thousands of property managers to sign lease agreements digitally.
Safe –
E-signatures have multiple layers of authentication and security built into them, not forgetting the court-admissible proof f transaction. On the contrary, the reality is wet-ink signatures can easily be tampered with and forged.
Legally binding –
According to the ESIGN Act, electronic signatures are as legally binding and compelling as wet ink signatures. A contract or signature cannot be denied legal effect, enforceability, or validity simply because it is in electronic format.
Affordable –
With solutions such as Foxit eSign aka eSign Genie, a rental agreement can be signed from as low as $2 (pay as go plan).
Should you start signing rental agreements electronically now?
Ultimately, electronic signatures help you stay ahead. As we highlighted earlier, online lease signing is becoming the new norm of doing business for property managers. Establishing yourself online early can position you ahead of your competitors.
Still not convinced? Below are just a few ways how online rental agreement signing can be beneficial to both property managers and tenants:
Why it is ideal for property managers and agents.
Save Unnecessary Costs –
First, depending on the number of clauses your lease agreement has, it might be expensive to print every page. As you add and subtract clauses, draft and redraft the lease, and make adjustments proposed by the client, tens of copies can be printed.
Save the ink and paper costs by doing things digitally. You also save transportation costs that you would otherwise have incurred going to meet the lessee.
Save Time –
Online signing makes processes quicker for everyone involved. It is faster to send a rental agreement online than it is to print it out and then send it via post or courier. Property managers can review and sign leases from anywhere, and at any time from the convenience of their offices.
Boost Occupancy –
Doing things digitally makes you a more attractive property manager to tenants. It gives you a professional image, instilling confidence in your abilities and operations. It also gives you an upper hand over your competitors, who may not be privy to these modern services.
Make Renewals Easier –
when a lease agreement is available online, the renewal process becomes much straightforward. Just resend the contract to the lessee for hassle-free signing.
Better reviews and recommendations –
When a client wants to move out, the convenience associated with online lease signing makes you look better, particularly when it comes to giving online reviews and recommendations. Tenants are likely to recommend you to their friends, citing how convenient it is to deal with you since everything is done online.
Go green –
Saving paper translates to saving trees, making your operations greener. The fact that your business adopts eco-friendly approaches may also appeal to some tenants.
Why It Is Ideal for Your Tenants
You will stand out as a property manager if you can make your tenants’ life easier. Online lease singing is one practical way to do it.
Time-saving benefits –
Tenants equally saves a lot of time when they sign lease agreements online. They can review and sign the contract at their convenience.
This is also good for you since an informed tenant can raise their concerns immediately. You can then implement the necessary changes to the agreement in almost real-time.
Save Distance –
Tenants can sign the rent agreement virtually as opposed to visiting your office or meeting you physically. Even tenants that reside nearby will appreciate the fact that they can sign the agreement form within the comfort of their offices or homes.
Guaranteed access to a copy of the agreement –
savvy tenants will likely need an extra copy of the rental lease agreement they sign, for reference purposes. By taking processes digital signature, tenants can always have access to an extra copy of the contract, straight from their gadgets.
How to Create and Sign The Rental Agreement Form With Foxit eSign aka eSign Genie
Sign up for Foxit eSign aka eSign Genie
To use Foxit eSign aka eSign Genie for your lease agreement signing, you will first need to register. Don’t worry; this will only take a short time.
If you are doubtful of Foxit eSign aka eSign Genie’s capabilities, we have something different for you. Try our 14-day free trial sign up so that you will have enough time to evaluate whether or not we are a perfect fit for your digital signing process.
Download Our Rental Agreement Template or Upload Your Own
Foxit eSign aka eSign Genie offers a template for new property managers or agents who wish to jumpstart their digital signing process.
Our lease contract template is pre-designed with custom variables to help property management companies create agreements quickly.
If you already have a lease contract that you use, you can upload it directly to the Foxit eSign aka eSign Genie and adjust it from within the platform.
If your rental agreement form isn’t stored on your computer, you can import it into Foxit eSign aka eSign Genie using our native integrations. Foxit eSign aka eSign Genie supports direct imports from Microsoft OneDrive, Box, Dropbox, Google Drive, just to name a few.
Build Better Lease Agreements with Foxit eSign aka eSign Genie Editing Tools
Foxit eSign aka eSign Genie has a drag and drops feature that makes document-customization easy and quick.
It is effortless to spell out the finer points of an agreement when using Foxit eSign aka eSign Genie’s editing tools. You can specify monthly rent, designate lease terms, or discuss the parameters of lease termination, all within a single, customizable form.
Add Signature Fields to Your Rental Contract.
Once you have uploaded and modified your rental lease agreement successfully, use the date and signature features to show signatories where they should impede their signature.
Sign the Agreement and Send
Foxit eSign aka eSign Genie offers signatories variety, especially when it comes to submitting their signature. Tenants can upload their signature, draw it, or use the preselected text options within the app. And that’s it! Simple!
It’s the high time property managers went digital.
E sign technology is not the technology of tomorrow; indeed, it is a new standard of the property management and real estate industry. As you might have realized, the time and money saved, and the convenience involved make online lease signing an obvious pick.
For more information on signing rental agreement forms online, schedule a demo with one of our product specialists.
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