Lease for 1st MTR guest

[Aditya Kohli]

Hey folks, 
I am trying to draft lease for my first MTR guest, what resource can i use for the same ? 

2. Also what clauses would you keep for the guest in the lease? I am thinking for a cap of utilities bill . 

3. What can I do for background verification of the guest ?

[Bonnie Low]

Hi @Aditya Kohli - as @Don Konipol suggests, having a real estate attorney draft your lease is always your safest option. However, if you don't have an attorney and you're just getting started, look into some of the templates provided by services like Keycheck and Avail that are created just for this purpose. When I set up my first MTR property I started by creating my listing on Furnished Finder then used their affiliate, Keycheck, both to run the background check on prospective guests (it includes criminal background check, credit score and eviction check) as well as their state-specific lease. The background check is very easy to use. With the basic account I believe you get unlimited background checks, because the guest actually pays for them, and something like a max of 5 leases. You simply enter your prospective guest's name, DOB and address and Keycheck sends them a link. They pay the fee and the report is run automatically and sent to you. The cost to the guest is $39 I believe. If you decide to move forward, you can also use Keycheck's lease creator. Just be sure to use the state-specific lease. Laws are quite different in CA than in MO, for example so you want the right one. It also gives you the ability to customize it with terms like quiet hours, where the guest can park, what day garbage service is and whether or not they are responsible for moving garbage cans, etc. This format worked well for me for the first few but I quickly outgrew the free account. I then switched to Avail for the lease. I have a paid account on Avail with unlimited leases and lease cloning (which is a very convenient feature). I also like their e-sign interface better but that's just personal preference. I hope this helps get you off to a good start. These are inexpensive and very intuitive programs that won't overwhelm someone just starting out. Good luck!