Arizona Landlord Tenant Blog

Forms - What forms do I need and where to I get them (residential)?

What are the most important forms?  The rental agreement is the single most important form. It is the source of all your legal rights and remedies, except the meager rights and remedies provided by the Act. The rental agreement forms available from the local stationery store do not favor the landlord, are too generic, contain too many blank
spaces and, as a general rule, will not do an adequate job of protecting your rights and property and most do not even comply with Arizona law (i.e., inclusion of required notices to the tenant).  Spend a few dollars; have a good rental agreement drafted specifically
for you, the landlord, by an attorney who is experienced in this area.

The Tenant Application, Property Inspection Checklist and Tenant
Information Sheet are also important forms because they are used every time you sign up a new tenant and because of the information they capture.

Because of the potential consequences to children, the pool safety notice and the lead-based paint disclosure form are also very important.

Where do I get forms?  Your rental agreement should be drafted by your own attorney. Your attorney should also be able to provide you with the other forms that you will need. Alternatively, you may obtain virtually all other forms (except for the rental agreement) from a local stationery store (these forms {but not the rental agreement} are normally adequate).  Paper forms and electronic forms are also available for purchase at another site: Forms

Lease/Rental Agreement - What MUST, SHOULD and CANNOT be included (residential)?

A written rental agreement MUST: Disclose the name of the manager and the owner or owner’s agent; disclose that the owner has Arizona real estate license (if true); inform the tenant that a copy of the Act is available free of charge from the Arizona Secretary of State’s Office; inform the tenant that s/he may be present during the move-out inspection; be completely filled out; state which deposits are nonrefundable and state the purpose for each nonrefundable deposit, charge or fee; be in writing if longer than one year; give notice about lead-based paint and pool safety (if applicable); and a signed copy must be delivered to the tenant. In addition, the landlord must
provide the tenant with a move-in inspection form when tenancy begins and an out-of-state residential landlord must have an in-state statutory agent.

The rental agreement SHOULD: be written; be comprehensive; provide for abandonment; describe the tenant’s maintenance obligations; explain limitations on alterations/modifications; provide for regular inspections; provide for payment of expenses incurred to bring legal action, late fees, notice fees and how partial payments are to be applied; include a liquidated damages provision, a jury waiver provision, allow for rental tax increases and include other provisions.

The rental agreement CANNOT: require the tenant to waive his/her rights, include any provision contrary to the Act, agree to pay attorney’s fees (with an exception), agree to limit the landlord’s liability, and/or require a security deposit greater than one and one-half month’s rent.

Partial payment of rent (residential)

If the tenant wants to make a partial payment (either before or after you serve a 5-Day Notice to Pay or Quit) AND you wish to accept a partial rent payment (which the landlord IS NOT required to do), then you should use a "partial payment agreement."  A "partial payment agreement," as defined by A.R.S. Section 33-1371, is a "contemporaneous writing" of the terms and conditions of the partial payment.  A "contemporaneous writing" is a written agreement between the landlord and tenant that is signed by both parties at the time the partial payment is accepted by the landlord.  The language in he agreement may be as simple as: "I, landlord, agree to accept from tenant a partial payment  of $___.  The remaining amount due of $___ shall be paid by tenant on or before _____.

Failure of the landlord to have a tenant sign a "partial payment agreement" will prevent the landlord from evicting the tenant for nonpayment of the balance that the tenant agreed to pay.  That does not mean that the landlord has waived for forfeited the balance due, it merely means that the landlord must wait until the next default (i.e., nonpayment of the next month's rent or some non-monetary default) before the landlord may evict the tenant.