A Houston lease agreement is a legally binding contract that explains the rights and responsibilities of a tenant and landlord. It lets the tenant rent residential property from the landlord if both parties fulfill certain conditions. It may include clauses for pet allocation, subletting, and termination procedures if either party wants to end the lease early.
Houston Lease Requirements
Houston doesn’t have city-specific municipal codes in place. Instead, it abides by the state’s default landlord and tenant statutes in Texas Property Code Title 8, Chapter 92. Here are some optional considerations to make when creating a lease:
Optional Lease Disclosures and Addendums
Even though these disclosures and addendums are optional, they can help landlords avoid liability issues and promote transparency with a tenant:
- Crime-free addendum: Houston is only safer than 2% of neighborhoods in the U.S., so a crime-free addendum bans the tenant from engaging in illegal activity on or near the residence.
- Mold addendum: Houston gets an average of 75% humidity annually. A mold addendum clarifies the responsibilities a tenant has to prevent mold and bring up the issue if it develops on the property.
- Medical marijuana addendum: A medical marijuana addendum clarifies how tenants can consume the substance on the property. Texas law lets landlords limit marijuana consumption to non-smoking methods for the benefit of other tenants.
- Pest control addendum: Houston’s cockroach problem makes a pest control addendum desirable, as it states what responsibilities tenants have to mitigate the nuisance of pests.
- Asbestos disclosure: An asbestos disclosure reveals if asbestos is present in the residence.
