New Lease Agreement Date - property is currently occupied
I found a new renter for my property. I am giving increased rent $200/mo back to current tenant for finding future renter. Current lease is month to month. Renter is looking for home out of state and gave me a move out date of 4/15-5/15. New renter said they can move in when current tenant vacated the property. Question is: when would the new lease start date be? I want to take deposit and get a signed lease now as new renter wants to secure this place also?
Do I just pick a date of 5/15 and tell current tenant they must move by this date? I want to make this work for all. New renter will put their place up for sale also. Lots of moving parts.
Thank you for your advice (first time self manager). You guys are awesome.
Go ahead and write up the lease with the 5/15 move in. Add an addendum that should the property become available sooner, she will sign a new lease to reflect the date change.
@Dena Puliatti thank you for your response. So that means if she's not ready and the date of availability is 5/1, she must sign the lease to start 5/1 right? Is that the price she pays for me to hold the property for her? I would think she would NOT want to occupy it sooner. Would you recommend that I just eat those days if it becomes available sooner? Thank you for your advice.
I would guess you're rent rates are low if people are chomping at the bit to sign a contract four months in advance. Maybe I'm wrong.
The new tenant should pay a holding fee (not a deposit) equal to one month of rent. I would include a simple one-paragraph agreement that says they agree to sign the lease and rent the property for one year at $XXXX per month with a lease start date of [DATE]. If they fail to sign the lease or start renting on that date, the fee is non-refundable and the property goes back on the market. If they successfully sign the lease and start renting, then the fee will be applied to their security deposit.
Personally, I would have waited until the current tenant gave notice, then I would find a renter on the open market. It's very competitive and prices are going up, particularly as we move away from winter.
Hey Stephanie,
Congrats on being a first time self-manager!
I agree with @Nathan Gesner - wait until you get a firm move-out date from your current tenant before signing the next lease.
Our process is as follows:
- Provide renewal options 90 days ahead of lease expiration
- Tenant renews or provides notice
- If normal turnover, property is marketed ~30 days prior to property being available which is 14 days after move-out date
- If turnover is large (improvements or major upgrades), then first complete the turnover, then take new pictures and market the property.
Hope that helps!
@Cameron Tope thank you for your response. My property is in TN and I live in CA. I would think it would be better to take this prospective tenant since it will cost me atleast $1,800 to hire Zillow to show the property plus the vacant period. It would just make things easy.
Do you still recommend putting it on the open market? The property is in Franklin, TN. If I do a Rentometer on it, the median is $4,500 with in a 5 mile radius and $3,100 within a 10 mile radius. Quite a difference. There really isn't anything on the market now to compare to. Any advice is appreciated.
think in this instances you can have a dialog with the incoming tenant and you both decide what works. Usually you will have success if you both are flexible. Have you talked to them? If you agree on a move in date that you both are happy with then just write a lease that states the move in date will be X unless the current tenant has not moved out yet and if that is the case then the new tenant will move in once the current tenant has moved out.
Have they completed an application etc?