All agreements in between a property manager and a tenant are "rental contracts" according to Vermont's Residential Rental Agreements Act (RRAA). 9 V.S.A. § 4451( 8 ). The rental arrangement does not need to remain in writing. You and the landlord have all the rights and obligations in the law although there is no written agreement. 9 V.S.A. § 4453.

The RRAA requires that the responsibilities and rights of proprietors and renters in the law are implied (made a part of) all rental contracts. Which ones are indicated in all rental arrangements? See this list of rights and tasks of renters and proprietors. To learn more on these rights and tasks, visit our Rights and Duties Explained page.

All of the contracts made by you and the proprietor or implied by the RRAA are called the "terms" of the tenancy. 9 V.S.A. § 4454.

The RRAA secures you and requires you to do (or not do) some things. It likewise protects landlords and needs them to do (or not do) some things. The law is the exact same if you have actually a written or verbal rental agreement. 9 V.S.A. § 4453.

Any part of a rental agreement 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 contract a "lease" does not have any unique 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 landlords and housing authorities do the word "lease."

Rental contracts can be for a duration of time that is specified in the rental agreement. For example, the arrangement could be 6 months or a year. During that time, all of the terms (consisting of the quantity of rent) of the occupancy stay the very same. Or a rental arrangement can be "month-to-month." This implies the length of the occupancy or the quantity of lease can be altered as long as you get the notice needed by the RRAA.

As far as rental arrangements go, calling it a lease does not ensure that the terms can't be changed for a year. If you want the occupancy to be for a specific duration of time, you have to get the property manager to agree.

All of the rights and commitments of the RRAA belong to the agreement even without being made a note of. 9 V.S.A. § 4453. Any additional terms might not be enforceable unless you and the property manager have actually discussed them and agreed - and after that only as long as the RRAA does not forbid the contract. 9 V.S.A. § 4454.

If you have just a spoken arrangement, you may "agree" to something without recognizing you have actually concurred. For example, if you concur to no holes in the walls believing that does not keep you from hanging photos, the landlord may charge you for fixing the holes from hanging your pictures.

When you are deciding to rent a home, you need to pay attention to what the proprietor says.

Because the RRAA sets out numerous rights and responsibilities of occupants and landlords, and because composed rental contracts can't alter what remains in the RRAA, a written rental agreement tends to have more advantages for landlords than for tenants.

Advantages for a proprietor:
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- The landlord could reduce the time length of advance notice required to end the occupancy. 9 V.S.A. § 4467( c), (e).

• The proprietor could make the time length of advance notice you need to offer the landlord when you want to vacate longer. 9 V.S.A. § 4456( d).
• A composed rental agreement could require you to pay your property manager's attorney's fees if a lawyer is utilized to enforce any part of the agreement or to evict you. (Note: If you damage the system or interrupt your next-door neighbors and your property manager evicts you due to the fact that of it, the RRAA makes you responsible for the proprietor's lawyer's fees. 9 V.S.A. § 4456( e).).
• A written rental agreement can call individuals who can live in the system, and keep you from letting someone relocation in. - Note: It would be discrimination for a proprietor to evict you for having an infant. 9 V.S.A. § 4503( a).
• A property manager can keep you from subleasing the place you rent, 9 V.S.A. § 4456b( a)( 1 ), and can kick out the individual who subleases your location in an "expedited hearing." Expedited ways quicker than typical. 12 V.S.A. § 4853b.
  
  A composed rental contract may help you as a tenant due to the fact that:
  
  - It may guarantee that the lease will not change until a certain date.
• It can limit the quantity your rent 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 agreed to it. Verbal contracts outside the composed contract may not be enforceable. For instance, a written agreement can state who need to pay for heating fuel or electricity.
  
  Generally, a property manager can not charge late costs.
  
  A late fee is legal only if:
  
  - The rental agreement says a late cost will be charged for late lease, and
  
  - The charge is just the sensible cost to the proprietor since of the late payment. See Highgate Associates, Ltd. v. Merryfield, 157 Vt. 313 (1991 ). Reasonable expenses to the proprietor implies the property manager's actual extra expense since of late lease, like additional expense in keeping the books, driving over to you, making phone calls, or writing you letters.
  
  A late cost is illegal when:
  
  - A flat charge of a particular quantity of cash if rent is paid after the rent day is usually not the proprietor's affordable cost, therefore is unlawful.
• Your proprietor can not provide you a rent "discount" for paying by a particular date. In one case, the Windham Superior Court held that rewards for early payments are the very same as charges and thus, they are not lawfully valid. See Shapiro v. Cormier, Docket No. 220-5-12 Wmcv (Windham Super. Ct., Aug. 22, 2012). (If you need an accessible version of this PDF document, we will supply it on your request. Please use our site feedback kind to do so.)
  
  A rental agreement can consist of these terms:
  
  - Only the individuals named in the composed rental contract (and their minor kids, even if they arrive later) can reside in the rental.
• Subleasing is permitted or not enabled. 9 V.S.A. § 4456b( a)( 1 ).
• Smoking is not allowed.
• Pets are not permitted. But, if you need an animal because of your disability, see our Reasonable Accommodations page.
• A description of what spaces (home, other areas) are consisted of.
• Rules about utilizing common areas.
• Who is accountable for paying utility costs.
• The obligation to pay a set amount of lease, for a set time period, even if the tenant decides to move out early. (The property owner has a responsibility to re-rent the place as soon as possible, however the tenant may owe lease until somebody else rents it.)
  
  You can accept a change however you don't have to.
  
  If you or the property manager wishes to alter a term or condition in your rental contract, you can ask each other to agree. You or the property manager can't alter the rights and obligations in the RRAA, however other parts of rental contracts can be altered. If the rental arrangement is in writing, changes ought to be in writing.
  
  Generally for things like family pets, enhancements (remodeling or upgrading devices or fixtures) if a single person asks, and the other concurs, then that regard to the rental agreement is changed. But if the landlord desires something, and you do not desire it, then you can disagree.
  
  The examples below assume that the system remains in excellent repair, and not being harmed by the renter:
  
  - Two months after you move in the proprietor says, "I desire to get the bath tub and put in a shower." You state, "No, I like the bathtub." The bath tub belongs to what you accepted lease, and you do not accept change it. Landlord can't refurbish the bathroom.
• Or, proprietor states, "I am changing my mind. You can't have a family pet." You do not need to consent to get rid of your pet.
• Or you say, "I don't like the gas range in the home. I desire an electric range." Landlord does not have to consent to a brand-new range.
  
  Note: There is a difference between contracts to alter something and repair work required by law. The RRAA does not allow you or your family pet to trigger damage, 9 V.S.A. § 4456( a), (c), and the RRAA requires the proprietor to keep the system safe and clean, 9 V.S.A. § 4458. See our page about Repair Problems and Tenant's Right to Repair.
  
  You or the proprietor may desire to end the tenancy if one of you desires a modification and the other does not. If your rental contract is not for a specific duration of time, either of you could offer advance notice to end the occupancy. 9 V.S.A. § 4456( d), 9 V.S.A § 4467( c)( e).
  
  Staying longer than a written contract
  
  Do you have a composed rental agreement that states the rental arrangement was for a particular amount of time, for instance January 1 - December 31? If that time has expired, you may wonder if there is still a written rental arrangement, or exists no written rental contract?
  
  It depends on what the written contract states. If it specifies the dates and does not further address what takes place when it expires, the composed agreement ends, however the tenancy does not. That is since when you move in with the agreement of a proprietor, the property manager should send out a notification to end the tenancy, even if there is a written rental agreement which ends. Simply put, the expiration of the contract is not adequate notice to end an occupancy.
  
  A written rental arrangement that expires on a certain date might include a provision that specifies the length of the tenancy after that date has passed. It could say, for example, the tenancy continues from month to month. Or it could state if you do not leave, the occupancy continues for another year.
  
  Whatever it says, if the property owner desires you out, they have to provide you a termination notification required by the tenancy you have.
  
  Find out more on our Rent Increases page.
  
  A Vermont law that took impact on July 1, 2018, legislated ownership of up to an ounce of marijuana and two fully grown and 4 immature plants. If you are a renter, or if you have a rental aid from a housing authority, or if you have some other kind of federally assisted rental subsidy, be careful. Your lease and program rules might still make it an infraction of the rules for you to have cannabis or marijuana plants in your rental system. Your lease may likewise ban cigarette smoking, including smoking cigarettes cannabis.
  
  The new Vermont law does not alter the terms of your lease. The brand-new law does not change the program rules for renters with federal rental support. If you are unsure, check your lease or program rules or speak to your property manager or housing authority. You can also call us for assistance. Your information will be sent to Legal Services Vermont, which evaluates requests for assistance for both Vermont Legal Aid and Legal Services Vermont.
  
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