I assume that all my tenants know as much about property law as an attorney would know. As a result, all notices are in writing and on the standard forms provided by the non-profit organization, the California Association of REALTORS®. There is an excellent program provided by the California Association of REALTORS® called WINForms (www.WinForms.com), known as ZIPForms nationwide. This program has all the property and lease forms provided by the association, including lease agreements, lead disclosure, check-in, and even a rental application. If you are a REALTOR® in California, the program is included as part of your annual dues. Otherwise, the program is only available to attorneys or real estate licensees for a hefty annual price of $499.
You do not need to be an attorney or have a real estate licensee to obtain forms. You can join your local apartment association; there are many FREE as well as paid forms available on-line. In the worst case you can go to local office supply stores, such as Office Max or Office Depot.
Lastly, any verbal discussions that may have some legal consequences are written down and sent to the tenant. If the subject is too minor to require a written letter, I enter it in my ACT contact management program with a date and time stamp of the event. You also can simply make a notation in the tenant’s file. |
