Transferring a lease on a new home purchase - closing Monday!

[Eric Andersen]

Hi there,

I'm at the final stages of closing my first home :)

It's a 2 unit property and I'll be inheriting a tenant in one of the units. I have the estoppel and a copy of the lease. I'm receiving the rest of this month's rent, security deposit, and last month's rent from the owner, but haven't spoken with the tenant yet. I have the final walkthrough Monday and am signing closing docs after. Do I need to add an addendum to the lease or create a new one between the tenant and myself and have them sign? If so, should I do this before taking ownership?

Thank you,

Eric

[Kathy Henley]

@Eric Andersen You have no authority to change the current lease until you are the new Landlord. They current lease and all of its obligations comes with the building. Read it and do your part. When it is fulfilled, it could be renewed or altered, or maybe continued on a month to month basis until you write your own lease. If the current lease is MTM now, the lease will spell out the method of giving them notice to any changes. The Tenants may be willing to sign a new lease agreement immediately, but wait and see, you might learn something over the first few months.

On the day of close, the tenants need to know where/how to pay rent and how to reach out to property management for service requests. Go meet the tenants and hand the letter to them. They have been aching to know their fate. I like to ask, 'Is there anything I should be aware of.' It's a great way to learn stuff. Enjoy yourself.