A month to month rental agreement is a short-term lease that runs one month at a time. Create yours online with the free form below, or download the PDF and fill it out with the step-by-step guide on this page. The guide also covers the pros and cons for landlords and tenants.
Last Updated: October 2026. This guide is reviewed and updated regularly to reflect current law. If you notice an error or outdated information, please contact us.
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A month-to-month (MTM) rental agreement is a written statement that details the conditions for a short-term lease. Unlike a long-term lease, which usually lasts for a year, this type of agreement can be terminated or automatically renewed on a monthly basis. Oftentimes, long-term leases that lapse or exceed the agreed term become month-to-month rental agreements. In such an arrangement, the tenant and landlord typically renew the lease every 30 days.
For this type of lease agreement, you may encounter the following terms:
A fixed-term lease runs for a set period, such as one year. A month to month lease has no set end date and renews one month at a time. Both types cover the same basics, such as the parties, the premises, the rent and the deposit. The main difference is how long each side commits.
Choose a month to month lease for a short stay or an uncertain move date. Choose a fixed-term lease when you want a steady plan.
A month to month rental agreement gives both sides flexibility, but it also gives up the steadiness of a fixed term. The lists below show the main pros and cons for landlords and for tenants. Read both sides before you decide whether this type of lease fits your plans.
A month-to-month rental agreement can definitely be ideal for those looking for temporary accommodation. However, like any lease agreement, this type of rental also has its pros and cons. It’s best to weigh the benefits and be prepared for any complications. To ensure that your lease agreement is legal, you may use FormsPal’s fillable form, which you can download above.
Landlords can follow six simple steps to find a tenant and sign a month to month lease. They cover the home, the listing, the tenant check, the payments and the signed agreement. Each step below has a short tip and an image.
Step 1—Set up the premises.
To get inquiries, the landlord must first make sure that the premises offer good living conditions. Aside from this, create a design that would fit the demographics of your ideal tenant. This first step ensures that tenants will be willing to renew their month-to-month lease agreements.
Step 2—Take pictures.
Take pictures of each space in detail. Shared spaces like lounges, gardens, or parking spaces should also be included. These will help attract tenants who are willing to stay at the premises on a month-to-month basis.
Step 3—Find your ideal tenant.
Once you have the materials you need, create an online rental listing. Here, you can post the pictures, details of the lease, and your contact number. You may also announce it in the local newspaper to get more inquiries. You may also hire a representative from your local property management business to handle this for you. Take note, though, that you will have to pay certain commission fees. Aside from this, you will also have to properly orient them regarding lease agreements and lease use.
Some of the platforms you can use include:
Step 4—Do a background check.
It will be tricky to select tenants for month-to-month rental agreements. Still, the quickest and easiest way to conduct a background check is to check on social media and the landlord-tenant database. You may also call the tenant’s previous month-to-month lease landlords and long-term employer for further details.
You can also ask the tenant to fill out a rental application form to get essential information.
Step 5—Settle the monetary aspects of the lease.
Once the landlord finds the ideal tenant, they can settle the financial part of the lease. The landlord will typically receive the first month’s pay plus the security deposit. For tenants, make sure the landlord acknowledges the receipt of your payment. This obligation per month will reoccur every 30 days, so you may decide if a bank deposit or wire transfer will also be an acceptable mode of the lease payment.
Step 6—Sign the lease agreement.
Lastly, the landlord and tenant must agree on the provisions of the contract. You may download FormsPal’s fillable month-to-month rental agreement template below or use our step-by-step lease builder. Once both parties sign the agreement, they can proceed with the lease.
| Document Name | Month-to-Month Rental Agreement Form |
| Other Names | Monthly Lease Agreement |
| Avg. Time to Fill Out | 10 minutes |
| # of Fillable Fields | 54 |
| Available Formats | Adobe PDF |
The steps below follow the FormsPal template this page hands out, in the order the form is printed. It is a fillable PDF with 54 fields, so fill in only the parts that fit your lease. Each step shows a screenshot of the template filled with sample entries.
The screenshots under each step show the FormsPal Month-to-Month Rental Agreement template filled with sample entries in blue, so you can see where each answer goes. The names, addresses, dates and amounts are examples only.
Download the lease agreement template:
Month-to-month Lease Agreement Template – Adobe PDF (.pdf)
The required PDF editor should already be pre-installed on your computer. If it is, the file should open with ease.
Have these details ready before you start:
Step 1: Date, landlord and tenant
Enter the lease date, the landlord's name and the tenant's name in the three blanks of the opening paragraph.
Step 2: Property address and unit (Recitals)
Enter the street address of the property and the unit number in the Recitals paragraph.
The full address of the premises must be written in detail like so:
Step 3: Landlord's work and commencement date (Sections 2 and 3)
List any work the landlord will do before the Commencement Date, or write "none". Then enter the Commencement Date.
On the blank provided in Section 3, write the date when the month-to-month lease will begin. Take note that if either the tenant or the landlord decides to terminate the month-to-month lease, they must send a notice 30 days in advance.
Step 4: Rent, fees and security deposit (Sections 4 and 5)
Enter the monthly rent, the day of the month it is due, the late fee, the NSF/bad check fee and the security deposit amount.
Fill out section 4 as follows:
For a month-to-month lease agreement, a security deposit must be made. This ensures that the tenant will leave no financial obligations behind if ever they leave without advanced notice 30 days before vacating the premises. On blank number 1, write an amount that is anywhere between 50% to 150% of the monthly rent.
Step 5: Utilities the landlord provides (Section 6)
On the lines provided, list the utilities the landlord provides at no additional cost. Tenant arranges and pays any others.
Fill out the following details in section 6:
Step 6: Additional monthly utilities fee (Section 6)
Tick the box only if there is a monthly utilities fee on top of the rent. Then fill in the description and the amount per month.
Step 7: Repair requests and lost key fee (Section 7)
Enter the address or person who receives maintenance and repair requests, and the lost key fee amount.
Blank 1: For the first blank, the landlord must indicate a point person (usually the administrative personnel). This person will receive and attend to maintenance requests during the course of the month-to-month lease. It’s best if you write the full name and address. Meanwhile, the contact number may be optional.
Step 8: Painting and wallpaper (Section 7)
In the list of rules for the tenant, tick one box in each pair: painting permitted or prohibited, wallpaper permitted or prohibited.
Step 9: Pets (Section 9)
Tick "Pets permitted, per policy below" or "Pets prohibited". If pets are permitted, write the pet policy on the lines provided.
Section 9 explains the month-to-month rental agreement’s pet policy.
Step 10: Pet rent and pet deposit (Section 9)
If they apply, enter the pet rent and the pet deposit amounts. Leave them blank if pets are prohibited.
Step 11: Contact details (Section 13)
Under "If to Landlord" and "If to Tenant", enter each party's name and address lines, phone number and email.
In order to receive notices, the landlord and tenant must indicate their details.
Step 12: Parking (Section 14)
Tick "This Lease includes parking" and describe it on the line, or tick "No parking is included in this Lease".
Step 13: Landlord signature block
In the Landlord block, enter the landlord name, then complete the By, Its and Name lines.
Step 14: Tenant signature block
In the Tenant block, complete the By and Name lines.
Some parts of the form have no blanks, but both sides should still read them before signing. Go through the steps below in order, then sign the printed form and keep a copy each.
Section 8 explains that the tenant releases the landlord from any responsibility or liability, except for negligence. For example, landlords of month-to-month rentals may still be responsible for not disclosing any harmful living conditions or not responding to repair requests.
Sections 10 to 11 are standard clauses, but must still be reviewed by both the landlord and tenant. In rare cases, the tenant or the landlord may request a revision. FormsPal highly encourages that they hire an attorney to revise the contract.
Sections 15 to 20 are standard clauses in both short-term and long-term contracts. Still, these must be fully read and understood by both parties.
The screenshots show sample entries only. Type your own names, addresses, dates and amounts in every blank.
Click Create My Document at the top of this page and answer a few simple questions. You can save your progress, finish on any device, then download and print the document.
The average time is about 10 minutes. The PDF has 54 fillable fields, and you fill in only the ones that fit your lease.
Have these details ready:
A fixed-term lease runs for a set period, such as one year. A month to month lease runs one month at a time, which suits a short stay or a change of plans.
Yes. Download the PDF, open it in a PDF editor and type into the fillable fields. Then save, print and sign it.
General information, not legal or tax advice.
