There’s a big demand for online rental leases, also called digital leases. Want proof? Just look at all the websites that offer them. When there’s a big demand for any product, it’s usually because benefits are associated with it. And that’s the case with online rental leases—they come with benefits for both landlords and tenants, benefits you can’t get with old-style paper leases.
1. Online rental leases are standardized
Online leases are typically standardized fill-in-the-blank boilerplates that have been reviewed by a lawyer. That means both landlords and tenants can rest assured that the lease reflects the laws for your state. With that said, both landlords and tenants can easily customize an online lease to reflect any additional terms one or both parties might want.
The alternative
Before online leases were available, landlords, in a sort of Wild West environment, had no other choice but to make up their own lease. That lease might comply with state law, depending on how knowledgeable the landlord is. But those old-style leases usually require an attorney’s review to make sure the lease terms are legal. Not every landlord takes that step, which could make a lease term or terms from a paper lease invalid if state or federal law is broken.
2. Online rental leases save time
Online leases are available instantaneously to both the landlord and tenant. The tenant can read and review the lease in private, and when they sign it online, the landlord immediately gets it.
The alternative
Compare that online process with what happens with a paper lease: Landlords and tenants meet in person for a lease-signing session, or both parties print, sign, scan, and email the lease back and forth. Both ways eat up time.
Meeting in person
Meeting in person can be inconvenient. Both parties need to find a time they’re both free, and that could take a while. Then when they do meet, the tenant needs to read the lease in front of the landlord and then sign it. With this method, the tenant often feels rushed and just signs the lease without reading it. That’s not a good idea since the lease is a binding legal document that dictates living arrangements for the next year or so.
Printing and sending the lease
It’s possible for a landlord to get an old-style lease to a tenant without meeting in person, but that requires the landlord to email the lease and then wait for the tenant to print it out, sign it, scan it, and then email it back. That could take a while, especially if the tenant doesn’t have a printer and scanner.
3. Landlords and tenants have a copy of the lease
With an online lease, the landlord and tenant have access to the lease whenever and wherever they like. They can just pull it up from their smartphone or laptop.
The alternative
With a paper lease, the landlord might not provide a copy for the tenant. That’s problematic because the tenant, particularly if they don’t read the lease before signing it, won’t know the lease terms. And if the tenant unknowingly breaks a lease term, even if they didn’t know it existed, that tenant could be evicted. For example, there might be a no subletting policy in the lease, but if the tenant doesn’t know the lease terms and sublets the unit, both the tenant and person subletting could be evicted. Neither landlords or tenants want to go through the eviction process, but landlords will if they have to.
In the case of the landlord emailing the lease to the tenant, after the tenant signs it and sends it back to the landlord, the landlord would then need to print a copy, sign it, scan it, and email it back. If the landlord doesn’t do that final step, the tenant won’t have a signed copy of the lease.
4. Online leases are modern and professional
Younger renters who tend to conduct most or all of their business online, probably expect to get, review, and sign a digital lease as opposed to working with a paper one. If a landlord’s market is mainly younger people, by offering an online rental lease, those landlords are offering a service their market wants and expects.
Plus, all people, not just younger renters, like the convenience of online rental leases and view them as being professional. Landlords who use online leases demonstrate they keep up with the trends, and that makes a good impression on potential renters.
Tip: If a landlord offers an online lease, they probably offer online payment methods as well, which is also attractive to renters.
The alternative
If landlords don’t offer online leases to potential tenants, particularly those who are used to conducting business online, they might lose those renters who might prefer to rent from a landlord with more seamless processes in place.
5. Trees are saved
Most people care about the environment. Because online rental leases are digital, no trees are cut down to create them. Landlords who provide digital leases instead of paper ones show that they’re going green in this regard, and that attracts eco-conscious tenants who choose sustainable offerings.
The alternative
Some rental leases can have 20 pages or more. People who are eco-conscious will likely cringe at the thought. That’s not a good way for people to start a landlord-tenant relationship.
6. No storage necessary
No one needs to take up precious storage space in their home or office to store paper leases when a digital lease is used. And it’s easy to pull up the lease when it’s stored online. For people who do want a hard copy, they can print one out.
The alternative
Paper leases can easily get lost or damaged. Trying to find a lease that might not have been filed or put away properly could prove to be a time-consuming and ultimately losing battle.
7. Online rental leases are safe and secure
Signing an online rental lease digitally using an e-signature is safe and secure. The signer’s identity is verified, typically by requiring the submission of an email address and phone number and for the signer to send in a one-time passcode. With an online rental lease, an audit trail has been created once someone signs, which includes information such as when the lease was opened, viewed, and signed. The signed online lease is then secured with public key infrastructure (PKI), a technology for authenticating users.
The alternative
Compare the safe and traceable e-signature with a signature using a pen on a paper lease. The only way to know if that signature is valid is to compare the signature with a person’s driver’s license or ID card, and that is often difficult to do.
The Zumper Digital leasing product
You might be interested to know that Zumper has a digital leasing product that’s easy to use. Just fill in the information fields, and a customized lease populates. It’s free to use—Zumper covers the DocuSign charge, and the lease is safe and secure.
To get started, just create your free account at Zumper, and you’ll be on your way to manage your rental business. Simply click here to start managing your rental properties today.
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