lease change the renter (a lawyer) wants to add about escrow

[Chelle Knijnenburg]

• Hello all.
• Our future renter wants to put these two items in the contract, one is in case we put the house on the market. Note that she is a lawyer. We don't fully understand the escrow clause and how it might affect us if we do sell the place. The renter feared being kicked out by a new owner. We assured her we would sell it only if the market skyrockets but would write the sales contract with them as renters until their lease ends. We are wondering if these are both in our best interest as they are written or is there is anything we should add to protect ourselves?  One of my concerns was, if we do sell and the deposits are in escrow, who ultimately is responsible for any repairs when the lease ends? She said she knows us as landlords and trusts we will not keep the deposits unless there is a true issue, but is afraid the new buyer might keep the deposits just because they can.
• We talked with her and she was upfront about the dog and thankful that we allowed him. With their income, they could rent four of our places. They love the lifestyle of the area.  They have sold their place and are building another. They were attracted to our rental because it was like they are with their house -- "so clean and obviously taken care of". We are charging them a "$1500.00 pet deposit" as they have a 7 year old lab.  We have scheduled four maintenance checks over the next year to check on the place and maintain the HVAC. This security amount, when added to the security deposit, equals the cost of replacing the wood floor in a worst case scenario. We just put in engineered floors in the first level (living) and they said they will put their oriental and another rug by the front door. The second level, all tile, has another living area, eat in kitchen and small dining area. They said have their dog groomed monthly including nail clipping. It's mostly going to be just her as her husband travels a lot. It is three stories. She works from home. It is a very dog friendly area. 
• Here is what they want to add to the lease ---
• The deposits are held in escrow if the property is sold in the Spring and that she is given reasonable time (12 hours) for showing if the home is put on the market."
• "No maintenance deductible for repairs over $100. They accept the responsibility of repairing items as they come up that are under $100 or for anything they may have caused, however they do not want to pay for repairs that arise and are out of their control.

I hope I covered all the aspects that would help any of you with giving us guidance in this decision. Thanks for your help.

Chelle

[Fred Heller]

I'm surprised this lawyer doesn't know the expression "runs with the land." The lease runs with the land and is binding on anyone who may buy the property.

I'm also surprised this lawyer doesn't know that any potential buyer will be bound by the same rules regarding security deposits as you are. On a sale, you would transfer the security deposit to the buyer, and he would have to place it in a separate account. They can't just keep it, but would have to return it when the tenant moves out, minus any deductions for damages.