All arrangements in between a property owner and a renter are "rental arrangements" according to Vermont's Residential Rental Agreements Act (RRAA). 9 V.S.A. § 4451( 8 ). The rental arrangement does not have to remain in composing. You and the property owner have all the rights and responsibilities in the law despite the fact that there is no written arrangement. 9 V.S.A. § 4453.

The RRAA requires that the tasks and rights of landlords and occupants in the law are indicated (made a part of) all rental agreements. Which ones are indicated in all rental agreements? See this list of rights and duties of tenants and proprietors. For more information on these rights and tasks, visit our Rights and Duties Explained page.
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All of the agreements made by you and the property manager or implied by the RRAA are called the "terms" of the occupancy. 9 V.S.A. § 4454.

The RRAA secures you and requires you to do (or not do) some things. It also protects property managers and requires them to do (or not do) some things. The law is the very same if you have a composed or spoken rental agreement. 9 V.S.A. § 4453.

Any part of a rental contract that attempts to get around the RRAA isn't legal. 9 V.S.A. § 4454. See the list of rights and tasks in the RRAA for what must remain in a rental contract.

The RRAA never uses the word "lease." Calling a domestic rental agreement a "lease" does not have any special legal significance in Vermont. Other statutes (12 V.S.A. § 4851( ejectment), 10 V.S.A. § 6201( 5 )( mobile home parks)), the courts, subsidized housing proprietors and housing authorities do use the word "lease."

Rental agreements can be for a duration of time that is specified in the rental contract. For example, the arrangement might be 6 months or a year. During that time, all of the terms (consisting of the amount of lease) of the occupancy remain the same. Or a rental agreement can be "month-to-month." This suggests the length of the tenancy or the quantity of rent can be changed as long as you get the notice needed by the RRAA.

As far as rental agreements go, calling it a lease doesn't guarantee that the terms can't be altered for a year. If you desire the tenancy to be for a specific amount of time, you need to get the landlord to agree.

All of the rights and obligations of the RRAA are part of the contract even without being jotted down. 9 V.S.A. § 4453. Any extra terms may not be enforceable unless you and the landlord have talked about them and concurred - and after that just as long as the RRAA does not forbid the agreement. 9 V.S.A. § 4454.

If you have just a spoken contract, you might "agree" to something without realizing you have actually agreed. For instance, if you consent to no holes in the walls believing that does not keep you from hanging photos, the proprietor may charge you for fixing the holes from hanging your pictures.

When you are deciding to rent an apartment or condo, you need to pay close to what the property owner states.

Because the RRAA sets out lots of rights and duties of tenants and landlords, and since composed rental agreements can't alter what remains in the RRAA, a composed rental contract tends to have more benefits for property owners than for occupants.

Advantages for a proprietor:

- The property manager could shorten the time length of advance notification required to end the tenancy. 9 V.S.A. § 4467( c), (e).

• The proprietor could make the time length of advance notice you need to give the property manager when you want to leave longer. 9 V.S.A. § 4456( d).
• A composed rental arrangement might require you to pay your property owner's lawyer's costs if a legal representative is utilized to impose any part of the agreement or to evict you. (Note: If you harm the unit or disturb your neighbors and your proprietor evicts you due to the fact that of it, the RRAA makes you responsible for the landlord's attorney's fees. 9 V.S.A. § 4456( e).).
• A written rental agreement can name the people who can reside in the unit, and keep you from letting somebody relocation in. - Note: It would be discrimination for a property manager to evict you for having an infant. 9 V.S.A. § 4503( a).
• A property owner can keep you from subleasing the place you lease, 9 V.S.A. § 4456b( a)( 1 ), and can kick out the individual who subleases your place in an "expedited hearing." Expedited means quicker than normal. 12 V.S.A. § 4853b.
  
  A composed rental agreement might help you as an occupant because:
  
  - It might ensure that the rent will not alter up until a certain date.
• It can limit the amount your lease can increase.
• It can say the length of time you can live there.
• If it isn't written in the agreement, the landlord can't say you consented to it. Verbal contracts outside the composed arrangement might not be enforceable. For instance, a written agreement can state who need to spend for heating fuel or electrical energy.
  
  Generally, a proprietor can not charge late costs.
  
  A late charge is legal just if:
  
  - The rental agreement states a late cost will be charged for late lease, and
  
  - The charge is only the affordable expense to the property owner due to the fact that of the late payment. See Highgate Associates, Ltd. v. Merryfield, 157 Vt. 313 (1991 ). Reasonable expenses to the property owner indicates the property manager's actual additional cost since of late lease, like extra expense in keeping the books, driving over to you, making telephone call, or writing you letters.
  
  A late cost is illegal when:
  
  - A flat charge of a particular quantity of money if lease is paid after the lease day is typically not the property manager's reasonable expense, and so is illegal.
• Your property manager can not offer you a lease "discount" for paying by a particular date. In one case, the Windham Superior Court held that rewards for early payments are the same as penalties and thus, they are not legally legitimate. See Shapiro v. Cormier, Docket No. 220-5-12 Wmcv (Windham Super. Ct., Aug. 22, 2012). (If you require an accessible variation of this PDF document, we will provide it on your demand. Please utilize our website feedback form to do so.)
  
  A rental contract can include these terms:
  
  - Only individuals called in the written rental arrangement (and their small children, even if they show up later on) can live in the rental.
• Subleasing is permitted or not permitted. 9 V.S.A. § 4456b( a)( 1 ).
• Smoking is not allowed.
• Pets are not enabled. But, if you need an animal since of your special needs, see our Reasonable Accommodations page.
• A description of what areas (living space, other areas) are included.
• Rules about using common areas.
• Who is responsible for paying energy costs.
• The obligation to pay a set amount of lease, for a set duration of time, even if the renter decides to vacate early. (The landlord has a duty to re-rent the location as soon as possible, but the tenant might owe rent up until somebody else rents it.)
  
  You can accept a change however you don't have to.
  
  If you or the proprietor wants to alter a term or condition in your rental contract, you can ask each other to agree. You or the property manager can't change the rights and commitments in the RRAA, however other parts of rental arrangements can be altered. If the rental agreement remains in writing, changes should remain in writing.
  
  Generally for things like family pets, enhancements (remodeling or upgrading home appliances or components) if a single person asks, and the other agrees, then that regard to the rental contract is changed. But if the property manager wants something, and you do not want it, then you can disagree.
  
  The examples below presume that the system is in excellent repair work, and not being damaged by the tenant:
  
  - Two months after you relocate the property manager states, "I wish to get the bathtub and put in a shower." You state, "No, I like the bath tub." The bath tub becomes part of what you agreed to rent, and you don't consent to alter it. Landlord can't renovate the restroom.
• Or, proprietor says, "I am changing my mind. You can't have a family pet." You do not need to consent to get rid of your family pet.
• Or you say, "I do not like the gas range in the apartment or condo. I want an electric range." Landlord does not need to concur to a new range.
  
  Note: There is a difference between arrangements to alter something and repairs required by law. The RRAA does not permit you or your family pet to cause damage, 9 V.S.A. § 4456( a), (c), and the RRAA needs the proprietor to keep the unit safe and tidy, 9 V.S.A. § 4458. See our page about Repair Problems and Tenant's Right to Repair.
  
  You or the proprietor may want to end the occupancy if one of you wants a change and the other doesn't. If your rental contract is not for a specific amount of time, either of you might give advance notice to end the tenancy. 9 V.S.A. § 4456( d), 9 V.S.A § 4467( c)( e).
  
  Staying longer than a composed contract
  
  Do you have a composed rental arrangement that states the rental contract was for a certain time period, for instance January 1 - December 31? If that time has ended, you may wonder if there is still a written rental arrangement, or is there no composed rental arrangement?
  
  It depends upon what the written agreement states. If it specifies the dates and does not additional address what occurs when it expires, the written agreement ends, but the occupancy does not. That is due to the fact that when you relocate with the agreement of a proprietor, the property manager should send out a notice to end the tenancy, even if there is a composed rental agreement which ends. Simply put, the expiration of the arrangement is not adequate notification to end an occupancy.
  
  A composed rental arrangement that ends on a certain date could include a stipulation that specifies the length of the occupancy after that date has passed. It could say, for instance, the occupancy continues from month to month. Or it might state if you don't vacate, the tenancy continues for another year.
  
  Whatever it states, if the landlord desires you out, they need to give you a termination notice needed by the occupancy you have.
  
  Discover more on our Rent Increases page.
  
  A Vermont law that worked on July 1, 2018, legislated ownership of approximately an ounce of cannabis and 2 fully grown and 4 immature plants. If you are a tenant, or if you have a rental subsidy from a housing authority, or if you have some other form of federally assisted rental subsidy, beware. Your lease and program rules might still make it a violation of the guidelines for you to have cannabis or cannabis plants in your rental. Your lease might also prohibit smoking cigarettes, consisting of smoking marijuana.
  
  The new Vermont law does not change the terms of your lease. The brand-new law does not alter the program guidelines for tenants with federal rental assistance. If you are unsure, check your lease or program rules or speak with your proprietor or housing authority. You can likewise contact us for help. Your information will be sent out to Legal Services Vermont, which screens requests for aid for both Vermont Legal Aid and Legal Services Vermont.
  
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