what am I signing?

What am I signing in this rental agreement?

Tenancy agreements decide who pays for what, whether you can leave, and whether you see your deposit again.

Paste yours and see what stands outFree. No account. It points at clauses — it never tells you something is safe to sign.

What it looks for

The deposit is what most disputes are about, and the agreement is where the argument is decided before it starts. Look for what counts as damage rather than wear, whether professional cleaning is required regardless of condition, and whether deductions can be made for things that were already broken when you arrived.

Joint and several liability is the clause that catches sharers. It means each tenant is liable for the whole rent, not their share. If a flatmate stops paying or disappears, the landlord can pursue you for all of it. This is standard in shared tenancies and is not hidden — but very few people signing a house share with friends realise they have personally guaranteed those friends' rent.

Then there is leaving. A fixed term with no break clause means exactly that: you are committed for the full term, and if you need to move for a job or a relationship or anything else, you may owe the remaining rent. Check whether a break clause exists, when it can be used, and what notice it needs.

Repairs are worth reading closely because the split is often not what people assume, and because a clause making the tenant responsible for something structural is a large hidden cost.

Related questions

Signing something else?

This is a reading aid, not legal advice. For anything that decides the next few years of your life, talk to someone qualified.