Technology plays a role in all avenues of real estate – be it buying, selling, or renting. By being able to search properties for investment and lease, pay the stamp duty and registration fees, etc. online, technology has taken real estate to great heights. In this guide, we discuss all about online rent agreements and why going digital with your rent agreement helps.
What is an online rental agreement?
An online rental agreement is similar to the physical rental agreement that we do between two parties – landlord and the tenant while leasing the property. The only difference is that this agreement is made in the digital space and doesn’t require us to do any extensive physical work like getting the documents notarised from the court, being physically present at the time of signing the documents, etc. It is also very convenient for anyone, including an NRI, to easily let out his property on rent by opting for a digital rental contract. The Indian government has made it convenient for NRIs to execute email-based rental agreements by using digital signatures.
See also: Pay rent with credit card on Housing.com
How to create an online rent agreement draft?
A rental deed agreement includes the following:
• Names and address of the landlord and the tenant.
• Property details
• Rental tenure – this will be a minimum of 11 months.
• Date on which rent will be paid.
• Mode of payment of rent.
• Security deposit that will be taken. Details of how and when the deposit will be refunded will also be mentioned in the agreement.
• Utilities that a tenant can use.
Since a rental agreement serves as proof and protects rights of both landlord and tenant, this has to be foolproof. It’s a good idea to take the help of a lawyer to draft an online rental agreement.
How to get an online rental agreement registered?
• Log on to the official government website of the state that will help with the leave and license agreement.
• Click on the rent agreement option.
• Choose the jurisdiction under which the property falls.
• Enter your details in the application form.
• Enter details of the property.
• Enter details of the tenant, the landlord, and the witnesses.
• Verify all the details entered and submit.
• You may need to use the biometric and digital signature to seal the online registration of the rental agreement.
See also: Stamp duty and registration for rental agreement in Maharashtra 2025
What are the documents required for an online registered rent agreement?
The documents required for an online registered rent agreement are:
• PAN Card and Aadhaar number of landlord, tenants, and two witnesses.
• A biometric scanner.
What are the advantages of an online rental agreement?
Mentioned are advantages of an online rental agreement.
Saves effort and reduces time
Online rental agreement has helped a great deal when it comes to record keeping and documentation handling. By opting for an online rental agreement, there is no need for you to print a rental agreement, sign it, scan it and then return the documents. Instead, you have to log into a verified third-party portal that is officially approved by the government, key in details, attach supporting documents and make an online payment. Once the data submitted is verified, you will get an email on your registered email ID with the agreement copy. Additionally, you can also seek a physical hard copy of this.
Eco-friendly
With the world going towards saving paper and the environment, going for an online rental agreement works in one’s favour as, in addition to being eco-friendly and reducing carbon footprint, it also saves time and effort. Additionally, costs of associated stationery such as stamps, ink pad, envelopes, etc. will be saved if one opts for an online agreement.
Easy to access
While a physical copy of an agreement may be damaged or misplaced, an online agreement can be easily stored, accessed anytime, anywhere. Yes, there may be cases of the file getting corrupted and you may be unable to access the agreement, but these challenges are sorted by opting for a digital rental agreement.
Minimises error in the agreement
An online agreement, because of the way it is designed, minimises the error in the agreement. Thus, basic human errors such as skipping mandatory signatures by mistake are removed with the process designed in such a way that it won’t proceed until all mandatory details are in place. Additionally, there are features such as online agreement notifying the landlord and tenant of an impending agreement renewal before the contract expires, helping better planning as to if they want to extend the contract before it expires.
Can be customised
Different Indian states have different rental laws that have to be followed. Online rental agreements can help customise the details that are state-specific. Also, note that the rental norms are different for different types of properties. So, it is different for commercial and residential. One can make use of portals that offer formulation of online rental agreements.
Is it ok to not opt for a registered rental agreement?
There are people who think that getting a registered rental agreement is time-consuming or confusing and hence don’t opt for any kind of registered rental agreement – online or offline. This is dangerous because this offers no legal protection to both parties, especially the landlord, because if the tenant is an errant tenant, he may refuse to move out of the property. And in the absence of legal documentation, one cannot contest against the tenant in the court of law.
Housing.com POV
Most people looking for rented properties are millennials or the Gen-Z who are extremely tech-savvy and would prefer online agreement convenience to handling physical copies. With home hunting easy virtually, online rental agreements is the logical next step that provides convenience with confidence of entering into an agreement that is legally safe. For years, NRIs would suffer monetary losses because of absence of online rental agreement. Now, with this facility, they can extend rental tenures by way of using digital signatures. In addition to improving the chances of your property getting a tenant quicker, online rental agreements also helps save the environment.
| Got any questions or point of view on our article? We would love to hear from you. Write to our Editor-in-Chief Jhumur Ghosh at jhumur.ghosh1@housing.com |
