Lead-Based Paint Disclosure for Rentals: Free Form and Guide (United States)

What the lead disclosure rule is

Lead-based paint was used in many American homes until 1978. As the paint wears, chips or is disturbed during repairs, it produces lead dust that is especially harmful to young children and pregnant women. The Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act of 1992 led to a federal rule, enforced by the EPA and HUD, that requires landlords and sellers of older housing to share what they know before a tenant or buyer commits. For rentals, the rule comes down to four things: a pamphlet, a disclosure, a warning statement in the lease and records you keep.

Which homes it covers

The rule covers most housing built before 1978, whether a house, an apartment, a condo or a mobile home. It does not cover:

• Leases for 100 days or less, as long as they are not renewed or extended.
• Units with no separate bedroom, such as studios, efficiencies, lofts and dorm rooms.
• Housing a certified inspector has found free of lead-based paint.
• Housing for older adults or people with disabilities, unless a child under six lives there or is expected to.
• Renewals of a lease where the disclosure was already given and there is no new information.

What landlords must do

Before the tenant is bound by the lease, the landlord must:

1. Give the pamphlet. Hand over the EPA pamphlet Protect Your Family From Lead in Your Home, or an approved state version.
2. Disclose what is known. Tell the tenant about any known lead-based paint or lead-based paint hazards in the housing, including where and in what condition, or state that there is no known lead-based paint.
3. Share reports. Give the tenant any records or reports you have about lead in the housing, including reports on common areas of a building, or state that you have none.
4. Put it in the lease. Include, in the lease or an attachment, the Lead Warning Statement in the exact federal wording, the disclosure, a list of the reports, the tenant’s acknowledgment of receiving the information and the pamphlet, the agent’s acknowledgment if an agent is involved, and signatures with dates from the landlord, the agent and the tenants certifying the information is accurate.

Record keeping

The landlord and any agent must keep a copy of the signed disclosure for at least three years from the date the lease term begins. Keep it with the signed lease, along with a note of when the pamphlet was given.

What agents must do

Leasing agents and property managers paid by the landlord must tell the landlord about these duties and make sure the disclosure is completed. An agent who fails to do that can share responsibility for the violation.

How to use our form

1. Confirm the year the building was built and whether an exemption applies.
2. Fill in the landlord’s disclosure: tick one box for known lead and one for reports, and initial each choice.
3. Attach copies of any reports you list.
4. Give the tenant the pamphlet and have them initial both acknowledgment lines.
5. If an agent is involved, have them initial the agent line.
6. Everyone signs and dates the certification before the lease is signed.
7. File the signed copy and set a reminder to keep it for at least three years after the lease starts.

State and local rules

Some states and cities go further, with rental registration for older buildings, required lead inspections, lead-safe certificates or their own disclosure forms. HUD-assisted housing has additional requirements. Check the rules where the property is located and add any required local forms.

Common mistakes

• Signing the disclosure after the lease. It must be completed before the tenant is bound.
• Rewording the warning statement. The federal wording is required as written.
• Saying no knowledge when you have a report. Any report you have must be disclosed and handed over.
• Forgetting common areas. Reports on shared hallways or exteriors of a building count too.
• Throwing the form away too early. Keep it for at least three years.

Lead disclosures in TenantLoop

TenantLoop sends leases out for e-signature through Dropbox Sign, and signed documents stay attached to the lease. Keeping the signed disclosure with the lease record means it is there when you need it, long after the three year minimum.