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New York residential lease agreement

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

New York's figures are the floor, not the answer. Rent stabilization governs a large share of New York City and parts of Nassau, Rockland and Westchester, and the Good Cause Eviction law (RPAPL article 6-A) applies in New York City and in every locality that has opted in, each of which adds required lease notices and limits what the rent may become. Check whether the unit is covered before relying on anything here.

What New York 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.

RuleNew YorkWhere it says so
Most a landlord may take as a deposit1 month's rentOne month is the whole of it: deposit and advance together. Rent-stabilized units, seasonal rentals and owner-occupied co-ops are the exceptions the statute names.N.Y. Gen. Oblig. Law 7-108(1-a)(a)
Earliest a late fee may be charged5 days after rent is dueN.Y. Real Prop. Law 238-a(2)
Most a late fee may be5% of the rent, and at most $50The ceiling is the LESSER of $50 and 5% of the monthly rent, and nothing at all until rent is five days late. The same section caps an application fee at $20 for the background and credit check.N.Y. Real Prop. Law 238-a(2)
Notice before the landlord may enternot sourced yet-
Notice to end a month-to-month tenancy30 daysThirty days holds only in the first year. It becomes 60 days once the tenant has been there a year and 90 days after two, and the same notice is required to raise the rent by 5% or more.N.Y. Real Prop. Law 226-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 New York 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 New York 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 New York?

New York caps every deposit taken together at 1 month's rent (N.Y. Gen. Oblig. Law 7-108(1-a)(a)). 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. One month is the whole of it: deposit and advance together. Rent-stabilized units, seasonal rentals and owner-occupied co-ops are the exceptions the statute names.

Can a landlord charge a late fee in New York?

Yes, but not without limit. New York allows no late fee until 5 days after rent is due, and caps it at 5% of the rent, and at most $50 (N.Y. Real Prop. Law 238-a(2)). A fee charged earlier or larger than that is not enforceable, and the rest of the lease still stands. The ceiling is the LESSER of $50 and 5% of the monthly rent, and nothing at all until rent is five days late. The same section caps an application fee at $20 for the background and credit check.

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

We have not sourced an entry-notice rule for New York. 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 New York?

30 days of written notice from either side (N.Y. Real Prop. Law 226-c). 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. Thirty days holds only in the first year. It becomes 60 days once the tenant has been there a year and 90 days after two, and the same notice is required to raise the rent by 5% or more.

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 New York read it before you rely on it.