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Updated over 8 years ago, 08/03/2016
Legality of language in Ohio lease?
Hello BP,
A friend of mine said his long-time landlord recently asked him to sign a new lease. Their rental agreement had been mostly unwritten and verbal up to this point. The landlord only gave him the last page of the agreement to sign which seems like a major red flag to begin with, and they also put some wording in the lease which seems contradictory to what I thought was law here in Ohio.
In case the attached picture did not come through, I am particularly speaking to the second paragraph in the picture. "In the event the tenant defaults in the payment of rent or other amounts required hereunder when due, the landlord may at its option immediately terminate this lease. The tenant shall at once surrender possessions of the premises to the landlord, and the landlord may without further notice remove all persons and all property from the premises. The tenant shall be liable for all rents remaining under the term of this lease until the premises are released. All notices to given given under this lease shall be effective only when made in writing and delivered to the landlord's office in the building or to the tenant in the premises."
Is this unusual wording? Does defaulting only imply being late, or something more than that? I don't think a landlord is allowed to simply terminate the lease and immediately remove all persons and all their property without further notice.
I'm wondering if I should suggest to my friend that he request that the document be reworded before signing, or if this language is typical to indicate that the standard eviction process will be used if needed?