A well written lease makes good landlords and tenants

Did you know that a lease can be either oral or written.  State Statute defines a lease as "an oral or written agreement creating a tenancy in real property".  Minn. Stat. §504B.001

.  Regardless, not only is it best practice to have any lease in writing, if a lease is for a fixed term greater than 1 year it must be in writing.  Minn. Stat. §513.05.  Failure to have such a writing will void the lease.  Id.  This requirement for a writing is called the “Statute of Frauds”.  The purpose of the Statute of Frauds is to provide reasonable safeguards and ensure honest dealing.  Doyle v. Wohlrabe, 243 Minn. 107, 66 N.W.2d 757 (1954). 

Since there is a requirement that a lease must be in writing, what satisfies the statute?  The writing can be “some note or memorandum, expressing the consideration, is in writing and subscribed by the party by whom the lease or sale is to be made, or by the party's lawful agent”.  Id.  In other words, the writing must contain enough so that a reasonable person could understand basics of the deal - the writing must contain the essential terms of the deal, e.g., description of the property, amount of rent and length of lease.

A well written lease for a term of any length can help when issues arise for both the landlord and the tenant.  It will help define the relationship.  It is like the old adage “fences make good neighbors”, here a well written lease will make good landlords and tenants.  I have seen different disputes that have involving written and oral leases.  The written lease situations always ended relatively quickly and inexpensively.  Contrarily, the situations that involved an oral lease were messy, drawn out and expensive.

If you are a property owner you need a lease and not all leases are the same.  Contact me to talk about leases and get it right the first time to avoid expensive disputes.  If you are a prospective tenant, remember that a lease is a binding contract and that once you sign it you are bound by its terms.  Contact an attorney to review your contract before you sign.