Residential lease agreement template

A residential lease agreement is a contract between a landlord and one or more tenants that sets the rent, the term, the deposit and the rules for living in a home, and in many places it can be signed electronically.

What it is

A residential lease gives tenants the right to live in a property for a period, in return for rent. It is one of the most searched agreement types online because every rental needs one. Many states and cities set rules that a lease must follow, such as deposit limits, required disclosures and notice periods.

This is general information. It is not legal advice, and landlord and tenant law is very local. Use a lease reviewed by a lawyer in the state where the property is, and check local rules too.

When it is used

A new tenant moves in after an approved rental application.
A lease renews for another year.
A roommate joins or leaves, which often needs a new lease or an addendum.
A property manager signs on behalf of an owner. See property management and real estate.

What it usually contains

Parties. Landlord or manager, and every adult tenant.
Property. Address and unit, plus included parking, storage or appliances.
Term. Fixed term with dates, or month to month.
Rent. Amount, due date, how to pay and late fees where allowed.
Security deposit. Amount, where it is held, and conditions for return.
Utilities and services. Who pays for what.
Use and occupancy. Who may live there, guests, pets and subletting.
Maintenance and repairs. Duties of each side and how to request repairs.
Entry. When the landlord may enter and with what notice.
Required disclosures. Many places require specific notices about the property or the deposit. These are often attached.
Ending the lease. Renewal, notice to leave, and move-out steps.
Signatures. Every tenant and the landlord or agent.

What e-signature law leaves out

ESIGN says a contract in interstate commerce may not be denied effect only because it is electronic, and that reaches most leases. State law can add rules, so check yours. It does not apply to certain notices. The federal list includes notices of default, acceleration, repossession, foreclosure or eviction, or the right to cure, under a rental agreement for a primary residence. See 15 USC 7003. Treat those notices as out of scope for docuinked, and follow your state's rules for serving them.

Things to get right

Every adult signs. Add each tenant as a signer. A document can have up to 10 signers.
Initials on key pages. Many landlords ask for initials next to the deposit and pet terms.
Attach required disclosures. Merge them into the same PDF so one seal covers the whole packet.
Consumer disclosure on. A tenant renting a home is a consumer. Keep the consumer disclosure on.
Copies for everyone. Each tenant gets an email with a link to download the sealed PDF when all have signed.

How to send it for signature with docuinked

In the app

Upload the lease, add each tenant and then the landlord, and turn on signing order so the landlord signs last. Place initials beside the deposit section and a signature and date for each person. Save it as a template per property type.

By API

A rental platform can send the lease the moment an application is approved. This example has two tenants who initial the deposit terms, then the manager signs.

curl https://docuinked.com/v1/documents \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $DOCUINKED_API_KEY" \
  -H "Idempotency-Key: lease-unit-4b-2026-12" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"title": "Lease: 12 Example St, Unit 4B",
       "pdf_url": "https://example.com/leases/unit-4b-2026-12.pdf",
       "ordered": true,
       "signers": [{"name": "Jamie Park", "email": "jamie@example.com"},
                   {"name": "Robin Shah", "email": "robin@example.com"},
                   {"name": "Dana Reed", "email": "leasing@example.org"}],
       "fields": [{"signer": 1, "kind": "initials", "anchor": "Tenant 1 initials (deposit):"},
                  {"signer": 2, "kind": "initials", "anchor": "Tenant 2 initials (deposit):"},
                  {"signer": 1, "kind": "signature", "anchor": "Tenant 1:"},
                  {"signer": 2, "kind": "signature", "anchor": "Tenant 2:"},
                  {"signer": 3, "kind": "signature", "anchor": "Landlord or agent:"}],
       "send": true}'

Software built for landlords can also put the signing page inside its own product, under its own brand. See platforms and embedded signing.

From an agent

A leasing agent built on Claude or your own stack can assemble the lease from the approved application and call create_document. A live send returns an approval_url, and a leasing manager checks the rent, dates and names before it goes to tenants. Agents never sign. See approvals.

Sources

Checked 2026-11-07.

ESIGN exclusions, 15 USC 7003: rental default and eviction notices for a primary residence are excluded.
ESIGN, 15 USC 7001: consumer disclosure rules in 7001(c).

Common questions

Can I send an eviction notice through docuinked?

No. Federal e-sign law does not cover eviction or default notices for a primary residence, and states set how they must be served. Use the method your state requires.

Does every roommate need to sign the same lease?

Usually each adult on the lease signs, so each is bound by it. Add each one as a signer on one document. Your lawyer can say how your state treats co-tenants.

Can a lease renewal be signed electronically?

In most cases, yes, the same way as the original lease. Send the renewal or a short addendum as a new document and keep both records.

Should a landlord sign the lease first or last?

Many landlords sign last, after checking every tenant has signed. Turn on signing order and put the landlord at the end of the list.

Try it in test mode

Free during the beta. Test keys send no email, so you can build the whole flow first.

Get an API key Read the quickstart