Maybe your not sure who is actually responsible for signing your apartment lease. Although you may think its just you, there many be multiple signatures required from different parties. Protecting your legal rights should be important to you as you should make sure that all parties to the lease should sign the contract.
Your Roommates
If you will be living with one or two roommates, all the parties should sign the lease document. But most landlords and apartment managers will want all roommates to sign anyways. You may see additional roommates signing the lease as a hindrance, but actually it will benefit you when they do sign. All parties to the lease will be equally responsible for paying the monthly rent. Also each roommate will have equal rights assigned to them when they do sign the lease.
The Landlord
The landlord should also be a party to the lease. When he/she signs the agreement it also will make the agreement legally binding along with your signature. You don’t ever want to have a verbal lease agreement. Its much harder to enforce and it usually becomes one person’s word against another. When something is in writing it becomes much clearer to all parties.
Your Lease Agreement is Very Important
Most people don’t even read their lease agreements in their entirety. And many people think that its just a list of rules that you must follow. For example you cannot have a barbecue grill outside on the patio, you cannot paint your walls, or maybe you are to refrain from having loud parties outside. All of this of course is true. But its also a contract that binds you, your landlord, and your roommates. Its a document that is supposed to protect you and your landlord as well.
Co-Signer
If you don’t qualify to lease your apartments in Downtown Houston, you will need a co-signer. They don’t necessarily have to live with you, but they have to sign the lease too. This means if you default on your rent payments, they will also be financially responsible. Usually if you have never leased an apartment home in the past and have no credit, a co-signer will be required.
A co-signer must also pay for any damages that occur while your living in the unit. So basically a co-signer is a safety net if the original renter cannot pay for their entire lease term.
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