First Lease, Step by Step: A 6-Lesson Course
A six-lesson text course taking you from budget to keys, with exercises, questions to ask at each step, a lease-reading sheet and a 25-term glossary.
By Whole Life HQCourse · 5 partsRead onlinePrintable
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The real opening page, word for word. 5 parts in total.
Part 1: Start here, and Lesson 1: Setting your budget
Welcome. This course walks through a first lease in the order it happens: budget, search, application, lease, move-in inspection and the first month. Each lesson ends with an exercise you can complete on paper.
What this course does and does not do
It does:
- explain each step in plain English, in order,
- give you "questions to ask" at every stage,
- give you exercises and printable pages to keep track of your answers,
- include a glossary of 25 lease terms (Part 5).
It does not:
- give legal, tax or financial advice,
- tell you what any landlord may or may not do where you live,
- promise a particular outcome with any application.
Tenant rules vary by state and by city. Deposit limits, notice periods, fee rules and how a lease can end are not the same everywhere. Throughout the course you will see the phrase "check your state and city rules." That means a quick look at your state's tenant guidance or a call to a local tenant rights organization. See a professional (legal aid or an attorney) if a lease term seems unclear or unusual.
What is in each part
- Start here, and Lesson 1: Setting your budget
- Lessons 2 and 3: Searching, applications and credit checks
- Lesson 4: Reading a lease
- Lessons 5 and 6: Move-in inspection and your first month
- Glossary of 25 lease terms and a one-page summary
What's inside
- Six lessons: budget, search, applications, lease, inspection, first month
- Six exercises and checklists to fill in as you go
- A lease-reading sheet and a key facts card
- A glossary of 25 lease terms in plain English
Who it's for
Anyone renting for the first time, or helping someone who is, who wants the process explained in order from search to the first month.
How you get it
- In your libraryCheckout opens at launch. After you buy, it appears in your library straight away.
- Any devicePhone, tablet or computer. Print it if you like paper.
- Yours to keepIt stays in your account, and you can come back any time.