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District of Columbia residential lease agreement

Answer the questions, download the lease. Free, no account, and it holds your figures to what District of Columbia allows.

The District does not have a no-cause notice period, which is why the month-to-month row is empty rather than short. Under D.C. Code 42-3505.01 a housing provider may recover possession only on one of the grounds the Rental Housing Act lists, each with its own notice, and rent control reaches most buildings built before 1976 that are not exempt and registered as such. The deposit ceiling is in the Municipal Regulations (14 DCMR 308) rather than the Code, and we have not read it off a source we can cite.

What District of Columbia law does to your lease

These are the figures the builder holds you to. Each one is the statute's, not ours, and the citation is there so you can read it yourself.

RuleDistrict of ColumbiaWhere it says so
Most a landlord may take as a depositnot sourced yet-
Earliest a late fee may be charged5 days after rent is dueD.C. Code 42-3505.31
Most a late fee may be5% of the rentChargeable only if the written lease tells the tenant the maximum fee that may be charged, and only once for each late payment. A District landlord may not take it out of a later rent payment, and may not charge it on the part of the rent a subsidy pays.D.C. Code 42-3505.31
Notice before the landlord may enternot sourced yet-
Notice to end a month-to-month tenancynot sourced yet-

The clause most landlords get wrong

Rent stated as a base figure with mandatory fees bolted on beside it. If a fee is not optional, it is rent, and several states now say so outright: the lease has to carry one total figure that the landlord may not charge above. The builder asks for the total and then asks how much of it is fees, which is the same information in the order the law wants it.

The second is the assistance animal. A no-pets clause that does not carve one out is a fair-housing problem, not a pet problem, and no pet rent or pet deposit may be charged for one. Your lease says so whether or not you allow pets.

After it is signed

Download the PDF and it is yours, account or not. If you want the tenant to sign it without printing anything, a free Kouzr account sends it for signature, files the executed copy against the tenancy, and keeps it beside the listing, the rent record and the deposit accounting, so the paperwork for that home is in one place when the tenancy ends.

Is this District of Columbia lease legally binding?

A written lease signed by the landlord and every adult tenant is a contract, and this one is built to say what District of Columbia requires a residential lease to say. What it is not is legal advice, and no lawyer has reviewed it. It is a form you complete yourself, the same category as the fill-in-the-blank lease sold in an office supply shop, and it is worth having a lawyer in your state read it before you rely on it, especially on a property you will hold for years.

How much can a landlord charge as a security deposit in District of Columbia?

We have not sourced a deposit cap for District of Columbia from the statute yet, so the builder does not assert one. Many states cap the deposit at one or two months' rent, and a few set no limit at all. Check your state's landlord-tenant act before you take more than one month.

Can a landlord charge a late fee in District of Columbia?

Yes, but not without limit. District of Columbia allows no late fee until 5 days after rent is due, and caps it at 5% of the rent (D.C. Code 42-3505.31). A fee charged earlier or larger than that is not enforceable, and the rest of the lease still stands. Chargeable only if the written lease tells the tenant the maximum fee that may be charged, and only once for each late payment. A District landlord may not take it out of a later rent payment, and may not charge it on the part of the rent a subsidy pays.

How much notice does a landlord have to give before entering in District of Columbia?

We have not sourced an entry-notice rule for District of Columbia. Twenty-four hours is the most common requirement in the states that set one, and it is what the builder uses as a default, but confirm your state's before you rely on it. Emergencies need no notice anywhere.

Do I have to include a lead-based paint disclosure?

Only if the home was built before 1978, and then yes, everywhere in the country. Federal law requires the landlord to disclose known lead-based paint, hand over any report they have, and give the tenant the EPA pamphlet before the tenant is committed to the lease (42 U.S.C. 4852d). Enter the year built and the builder attaches it for you.

Can I have the tenant sign it online?

Yes. Download the PDF and sign it however you like, or make a free Kouzr account and send it to the tenant for signature from here: they get a link, sign on a phone, and the executed copy files itself against the tenancy alongside rent and the deposit record. The PDF is free either way and does not require an account.

Kouzr is not a law firm and this is not legal advice. The builder produces a form you complete yourself, and no lawyer has reviewed the document it assembles. Have one admitted in District of Columbia read it before you rely on it.