Read a lease with a pen or a notes document beside you. For each clause, ask what it requires, when it applies and what evidence would show it was followed. Mark unanswered questions before accepting the agreement.
This checklist focuses on the document. Use what to check before signing for property verification, viewing promises and payment arrangements.
1. Parties, address and letting type
Check the landlord, agent and tenant names, the full address and exactly what space you are renting. Include all attachments mentioned in the agreement.
Ask whether the arrangement is an ordinary private tenancy or another type of letting. A room in the owner's home may be a licence. The RTB registration and licence guidance explains why the document's title alone does not settle its status.
If several tenants sign, locate the clause describing each person's responsibility for rent, bills and damage. Ask what happens if one person moves out. A list of names does not necessarily explain how liability works.
2. Rent, payment dates and reviews
Find the amount, payment frequency, due date and method. Confirm when the first payment is due and what period it covers.
A rent-review clause should be checked against the applicable law and the actual tenancy category. The phrase “reviewed annually” does not by itself authorise any percentage increase. If a clause mentions an old RPZ rule or same-day RTB notice service, ask for it to be checked against current guidance.
Use the rent-review notice checklist for the procedure and RTB private-rent guidance for the applicable pathway.
3. Deposit and proposed deductions
Locate the deposit amount, holder and return procedure. Ask how deductions would be explained and evidenced.
Pay attention to wording such as automatic forfeiture, compulsory replacement of items regardless of age, or an unexplained cleaning charge. Do not infer from a broad clause that every deduction would be lawful. The RTB deposit guidance distinguishes relevant arrears, unpaid bills and damage from normal wear and tear.
Ensure the inventory and condition report are available. They give both parties a starting point for assessing a later claim.
4. Bills and other charges
Check every charge mentioned, including those in an attachment. Identify who opens each account, who pays and how shared bills are apportioned.
Illustrative clause question: “The agreement says we pay a proportion of household bills. Which bills are included, how is the proportion calculated, and can we see the bill before payment is due?”
Ask the same question about a service charge or parking fee that appears only in the lease. Compare it with the offer you received.
5. Repairs, maintenance and access
Distinguish everyday care from responsibility for necessary repairs. Check how to report faults and what contact to use for urgent problems.
A sweeping term making the tenant responsible for all repairs needs clarification against the RTB rights and responsibilities. For covered tenancies, landlord access ordinarily requires your permission, except in an emergency. An inspection clause should not be read as unlimited permission to enter.
Record a practical way to arrange access for repairs. Where an agreement specifies a notice interval, ask what it means and how consent will be obtained; do not assume one universal statutory inspection interval.
6. Restrictions that affect your household
Read pet, smoking, guest, occupancy and use-of-property provisions. If a permission matters to your decision, have it recorded with enough detail to be useful.
Check any reference to house rules. Obtain them before signing and read the mechanism for changes. Ask about a broad discretion to introduce new charges or restrictions.
If the tenancy is shared, distinguish a guest policy from permission to replace a tenant or sublet. Those are separate issues.
7. Fixed term, break clause and leaving
Find the start and end dates, break clause, notice requirements and any claimed early-exit costs. Read each condition attached to a break clause.
Do not assume the ordinary tenant notice period alone ends an unfinished fixed term. Nor does a printed fixed-term end date describe every security-of-tenure right. Use the early-exit guide and RTB tenant-ending guidance for the route that applies.
Turn flagged clauses into specific questions
Keep a short review list with the clause number, the uncertainty and the change or explanation requested. For example: “Clause 12 refers to an administration charge but gives no amount. Please confirm when it applies and the basis for the charge.”
A tenancy agreement cannot override legal rights for a tenancy covered by the legislation. That does not mean every unusual clause is automatically void or that an online checklist can decide a dispute. Ask the RTB, an adviser or a solicitor about consequential uncertainty.
A lease scan can help organise questions. Review its findings yourself and treat them as prompts for checking, not a legal verdict.
Keep the final signed document and agreed revisions together. If you are still looking, create a free HomeScout account and carry this checklist into your next offer.
Official sources checked on 12 October 2026.