Subletting 101: What Records Should You Keep?

By Christine Ascher on May 24, 2017

As summer approaches, a lot of students are going to be taking on the ever-dreaded task of subletting. If your apartment lease continues through the summer but you’re going to be living elsewhere, subletting is the best option for getting your money back on your rent. This can be a complicated process and, especially if this is your first time, it may be a bit intimidating.

However, it’s almost always better than paying rent on an apartment that you don’t live in. If you’re subletting, there’s a lot of paperwork that you’ll need to get through. For the future, remember to keep the following records so you have them if any problems arise.

Image via https://pixabay.com

Your signed subletting agreement 

The most important document for you to keep is the subletting agreement that you and the other party signed. This should outline all of the conditions of your agreement: rent payments, utility payments, the consequences if the property is damaged, and move-in and move out dates, for instance. Because this is a legal record of your agreement, it’s essential to keep in case either party violates the conditions.

Written permission from your landlord

Your landlord might be allowed to reject subtenants based on reasonable grounds, so it’s best if you keep them in the loop from the beginning. In addition, whether you’re the sublessor or subtenant, it’s a good idea to keep a signed record of the building landlord’s permission to sublet. This should be obtained as soon as the subletting process begins, and you’ll want to keep it in case you run into any trouble with your landlord later on down the road.

The other party’s information

It’s essential that you keep the other party’s information, such as their address, phone number, and email. It’s almost inevitable that you’re going to need to get in touch with each other at some point, whether it’s due to a problem with the apartment or just to check in. The last thing you want is to run into an issue and not have any way to contact the other person. Even if it’s just to ask your sublessor a simple question, like how the oven works, this is a good resource to have.

The written consent of any cotenant or guarantor

If there are other roommates in the apartment or if the sublessor or subtenant have a guarantor, they’ll likely need to give permission as well in order to ensure the subletting process goes smoothly. Keep this in your records in case one of them starts complaining later on. For instance, if one of your roommates decides they don’t like your new subtenant and wants them to move out, you’ll have their written consent on file to allow the subtenant to live there already so they won’t have grounds to demand that the subtenant leave.

The lease agreement

If you’re the one subletting your apartment, keep your original lease agreement handy. If you have any questions about the start and end dates of your lease, that’ll be most easily answered here. In addition, this will outline the conditions for your rent payments, utility payments, and security deposit, which you will need to show to your subtenant in order to agree on how much they’ll pay for utilities and rent.

The subtenant’s background and credit check

Landlords often require background checks and credit checks of their prospective tenants. Even if they don’t ask for one for your subtenant, you might want to have your own checks done on your prospective subtenants in order to be sure that they’re trustworthy and financially capable of paying the rent.

If you have a background and credit check done, keep them for your records in case your landlord wants to see them — considering your landlord has to uphold the standards and reputation of the building, they might want to double-check that your subtenant will be a good resident. It’ll be much easier if you already have the results of your background and credit checks available.

Records of the sublessor and/or subtenant’s security deposit

If you’re subletting your apartment, you probably paid a security deposit when you first signed your lease. This will probably stay on your lease when you sublet. However, you are ultimately responsible for any damage to the apartment while your subtenant is living there. For this reason, you might want to have them leave a security deposit to cover these costs.

Keep the records of your own security deposit and that of your subtenant, in the case that there are damages to be paid for. Similarly, if you’re the subtenant and you pay a security deposit, keep the record of the deposit to make sure that you get it back at the end, and keep track of any damages you’ve caused to the apartment that might cause money to be taken out of it.

Pictures of the apartment in its original condition

In order to determine if significant damage has been done to the apartment after a subtenant leaves, keep pictures of the apartment as it was before the subtenant moved in, so you can fairly compare the before and after. If you’re the subtenant, it’s a good idea to do the same thing. especially if you notice that there are any issues with the apartment. With even minor details, like peeling paint or a small stain on the carpet — take pictures of these right away to make sure that you don’t end up being unfairly charged for them when you move out.

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