Rental Agreement

Rental or Lease of Room – Bedroom Agreement

Agreement made on the , between of , referred to herein as Owner, and of , referred to herein as Tenant.

1. Tenant agrees to lease one bedroom of the house, hereinafter called the rental unit, located at , hereinafter called the dwelling, together with common living areas shared by other Tenants, for a term of months, beginning and ending for the sum of $ per month, payable in advance on the day of each calendar month to , at . A late fee of $ will be assessed if the payment is not received by the day of each month; on the day of each month, the late fee will increase to $20.00.

2. A security/cleaning deposit on this rental unit in the amount of $ has been paid to Owner by Tenant. This security deposit is refundable if the Tenant leaves the rental unit reasonably clean and undamaged. The security deposit will not earn interest during the term of the Lease, unless required by State, County or Municipality law. Tenant may not use the security deposit as payment of the last month’s rent.

3. Owner will refund all deposits due within 30 days after Tenant has moved out completely and returned the keys, provided no rent, fees or other costs are due to the Owner. Should it be necessary to retain part or all of the security deposit due to damage, cleaning/trash removal, or unpaid fees, an itemized statement will be provided to the Tenant.

4. Should the Tenant move before this Lease expires, the Tenant will be responsible for paying rent through the end of the Lease term or until another Tenant approved by the Owner has moved in, whichever comes first. All costs associated with searching for a new Tenant will be the responsibility of the Tenant.

5. Without the Owner' prior written permission, no persons other than those with a signed Leased may live in the rental unit. No pets may stay there, even temporarily, nor may any rental unit be used for business purposes. Overnight and weekend guests are permitted, with a maximum of two per Tenant, with the agreement of all the other current residents. Subleases of the rental unit are subject to prior written approval of the Owner.

6. Tenant agrees to maintain the rental unit in a clean and sanitary condition. Tenant also agrees to help keep the common living areas, yards, and garbage areas of the house clean, with chores assigned according to an agreement made mutually by all the current residents of the house. As part of these chores, garbage and recycling bins are to be placed at the curb on the driveway for collection weekly on the appropriate days.

7. Tenant agrees to provide his own insurance and to name Owner as an additional insured under Tenant's insurance policy. Tenant agrees to file claims for any property or personal loss through his own insurance company before filing any claims against the Owner’s insurance policy. Tenant agrees to hold the Owner harmless from claims for personal or property loss for which the Owner is not responsible and for which the Tenant's own insurance should cover.

8. Owner specifically agrees to the following:

A. Owner shall provide the following furniture: sofas, chairs, and tables for the living room and dining room, a bed, dresser, desk and chair for each bedroom, and window treatments for all rooms.

B. Owner shall provide the following kitchen appliances: two refrigerators, one freezer, one microwave, and one stove.

C. Owner shall provide laundry facilities free of charge for the use of Tenants only.

D. Owner shall pay all utilities, including electric, gas, water, basic 3-line telephone service (excluding long distance), and cable TV.

E. Owner shall provide long distance service, with the bill separated among Tenants by the use of PIN numbers.

F. Owner shall pay for garbage collection.

G. Owner shall provide for and to pay for high speed internet access. Tenant agrees to furnish information and support for this system, as needed by the provider.

9. Tenant specifically agrees to the following:

A. Tenant agrees to accept the dwelling as is, having already inspected it.

B. Tenant agrees to smoke only in designated smoking areas, namely outside on the front porch and inside on the enclosed back porch and to keep these areas clean of dirty ashtrays and cigarette butts.

C. Tenant agrees to keep from making loud noises or disturbances and to play music or broadcast programs so as not to disturb other people's peace and quiet at any time.

D. Tenant agrees to keep all gatherings of residents and their guests from becoming disorderly. The maximum number of guests allowed at any one time in the house will be 30. Tenant must notify other residents, and receive their permission, for any party including more than two guests.

E. Tenant agrees to pay for repairs of all damage he, or his guests, have caused, including broken windows.

F. Tenant agrees not to paint, or otherwise physically alter, any part of the dwelling without first getting written permission of Owner.

G. Tenant agrees not to drill any holes or to apply any adhesives, paint, or other substances to the woodwork anywhere in the house (e.g., doors, window trim, door trim). Posters and pictures may be hung on the plaster walls, using plain adhesive tape, thumbtacks, pins, or small nails. Products such as “poster putty” or other adhesives are not to be used.

H. Tenant agrees not to remove or to add any furniture or window treatments to the rental unit or common living areas of the house without first getting the written permission of Owner.

I. Tenant agrees not to install any type of air conditioner.

J. Tenant agrees to store bicycles in the basement only.

K. Tenant agrees to use a watertight pan underneath any mini-refrigerator used in rental unit.

L. Tenant agrees not to keep any liquid-filled furniture in the rental unit or dwelling.

M. Tenant agrees to pay for long distance service used in the Tenant's name, within 10 days of receipt of a copy of the bill from the Owner.

N. Tenant agrees to allow Owner to inspect the rental unit, to work on it, or to show it to prospective Tenants at any and all reasonable times, with 24 hours notice except in cases of emergency.

10. Violation of any part of this Agreement or nonpayment of rent when due shall be cause for eviction under applicable law.

11. Owner is not liable for the loss or damage of Tenant's personal property while it is on the premises.

12. Severability

The invalidity of any portion of this Agreement will not and shall not be deemed to affect the validity of any other provision. If any provision of this Agreement is held to be invalid, the parties agree that the remaining provisions shall be deemed to be in full force and effect as if they had been executed by both parties subsequent to the expungement of the invalid provision.

13. No Waiver

The failure of either party to this Agreement to insist upon the performance of any of the terms and conditions of this Agreement, or the waiver of any breach of any of the terms and conditions of this Agreement, shall not be construed as subsequently waiving any such terms and conditions, but the same shall continue and remain in full force and effect as if no such forbearance or waiver had occurred.

14. Governing Law

This Agreement shall be governed by, construed, and enforced in accordance with the laws of the State of .

15. Notices

Any notice provided for or concerning this Agreement shall be in writing and shall be deemed sufficiently given when sent by certified or registered mail if sent to the respective address of each party as set forth at the beginning of this Agreement.

16. Attorney’s Fees

In the event that any lawsuit is filed in relation to this Agreement, the unsuccessful party in the action shall pay to the successful party, in addition to all the sums that either party may be called on to pay, a reasonable sum for the successful party's attorney fees.

17. Mandatory Arbitration

Any dispute under this Agreement shall be required to be resolved by binding arbitration of the parties hereto. If the parties cannot agree on an arbitrator, each party shall select one arbitrator and both arbitrators shall then select a third. The third arbitrator so selected shall arbitrate said dispute. The arbitration shall be governed by the rules of the American Arbitration Association then in force and effect.

18. Entire Agreement

This Agreement shall constitute the entire agreement between the parties and any prior understanding or representation of any kind preceding the date of this Agreement shall not be binding upon either party except to the extent incorporated in this Agreement.

19. Modification of Agreement

Any modification of this Agreement or additional obligation assumed by either party in connection with this Agreement shall be binding only if placed in writing and signed by each party or an authorized representative of each party.

20. Assignment of Rights

The rights of each party under this Agreement are personal to that party and may not be assigned or transferred to any other person, firm, corporation, or other entity without the prior, express, and written consent of the other party.

21. In this contract, any reference to a party includes that party's heirs, executors, administrators, successors and assigns, singular includes plural and masculine includes feminine.

WITNESS our signatures as of the day and date first above stated.