Kouzr
Start swiping

Massachusetts residential lease agreement

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

What Massachusetts 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.

RuleMassachusettsWhere it says so
Most a landlord may take as a deposit1 month's rentMassachusetts caps not just the deposit but everything taken at the start: first month's rent, last month's rent at the same rate, a deposit no larger than one month, and the cost of a new key and lock. Nothing else at all, so no pet deposit, no cleaning fee, no application fee.G.L. c. 186, s. 15B(1)(b)
Earliest a late fee may be charged30 days after rent is dueG.L. c. 186, s. 15B(1)(c)
Most a late fee may beNo statutory limit, but it has to be reasonableNo lease may impose any interest or penalty for late rent until 30 days after it was due, which is the longest grace period in the country.G.L. c. 186, s. 15B(1)(c)
Notice before the landlord may enternot sourced yet-
Notice to end a month-to-month tenancy30 daysThe statute says three months, or the interval between rent days where that is shorter, which on a monthly tenancy is a month. Fourteen days is enough where the ground is unpaid rent, and the tenant may stop it by paying within ten days.G.L. c. 186, s. 12

What Massachusetts makes you disclose

Separate written statement of the condition of the premises
A landlord who takes a security deposit must give the tenant, within ten days of the tenancy starting, a separate written statement of the present condition of the premises listing existing damage and any code violations. The tenant has 15 days to return it, and may attach their own list of what they disagree with. G.L. c. 186, s. 15B(2)(c)

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 Massachusetts 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 Massachusetts 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 Massachusetts?

Massachusetts caps every deposit taken together at 1 month's rent (G.L. c. 186, s. 15B(1)(b)). That is the total of the security deposit, any pet deposit, and any last month's rent held as a deposit, not each of them separately. The builder holds your figure to that ceiling and tells you when it has. Massachusetts caps not just the deposit but everything taken at the start: first month's rent, last month's rent at the same rate, a deposit no larger than one month, and the cost of a new key and lock. Nothing else at all, so no pet deposit, no cleaning fee, no application fee.

Can a landlord charge a late fee in Massachusetts?

Yes, but not without limit. Massachusetts allows no late fee until 30 days after rent is due, and sets no ceiling on the amount, which leaves the common-law rule that it has to be a reasonable estimate of what a late payment costs you (G.L. c. 186, s. 15B(1)(c)). A fee charged earlier or larger than that is not enforceable, and the rest of the lease still stands. No lease may impose any interest or penalty for late rent until 30 days after it was due, which is the longest grace period in the country.

How much notice does a landlord have to give before entering in Massachusetts?

We have not sourced an entry-notice rule for Massachusetts. 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.

How much notice ends a month-to-month tenancy in Massachusetts?

30 days of written notice from either side (G.L. c. 186, s. 12). The builder writes that figure into the term clause. A lease may agree on longer notice than the statute; one that gives less is unenforceable to that extent, and the statutory period governs instead. The statute says three months, or the interval between rent days where that is shorter, which on a monthly tenancy is a month. Fourteen days is enough where the ground is unpaid rent, and the tenant may stop it by paying within ten days.

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 Massachusetts read it before you rely on it.