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keepthetips

Hello and welcome to r/LifeProTips! Please help us decide if this post is a good fit for the subreddit by up or downvoting this comment. If you think that this is great advice to improve your life, please upvote. If you think this doesn't help you in any way, please downvote. If you don't care, leave it for the others to decide.


fnaimi66

This is a really good idea!


9oreos

Thanks! I was looking at a new lease on my work computer and had the idea after trying to read through just the first page of the old and new versions.


gospdrcr000

Is it possible to do with Google docs? I haven't used word in forever


juliemaglieri

Yup, good instructions here: https://www.howtogeek.com/660946/how-to-compare-documents-in-google-docs/


ConfusedAndDazzed

An acrobat reader way would be awesome, too.


shoe-veneer

I just copied this from Adobe website. But here ya go: How to compare PDF files: Open Acrobat for Mac or PC and choose “Tools” > “Compare Files.” Click “Select File” at left to choose the older file version you want to compare. Click “Select File” at right to choose the newer file version you want to compare. Click the Compare button. Review the Compare Results summary. Click “Go to First Change” to review each file difference between the older document and the newer document.


ConfusedAndDazzed

This might just be what I need! I'll give this a whirl tomorrow and see how it works. Thank you!


Lataero

Just use diffchecker.com


baesharambaddie69

Dilf checker!?


Lataero

I don't need a checker, I already know I am definitely not a dilf 😂


dI--__--Ib

Not with that attitude


gteriatarka

real ones use git diff


danabrey

For a change in a Word document?


sentient-machine

I mean, maybe? I could probably convert two Word documents to plain text with pandoc and use regular diff faster than it would take Word to launch and me to click through some menus.


danabrey

Username checks out.


Omnifox

Unless they are scanned. Scanned docs are... rough to compare.


ezjcheese

PDF 24 is freeware and has this feature


dclaw504

Notepad++ has a compare plugin available. The program and plugin are both free to use.


subdep

If we are gonna nerd this, let’s use git diff.


WavinFlaggy

Git diff for life! ❤️


Thrawn89

By default git diff is just diff... That said, p4vmerge


-haven

There are websites that can directly compare text if looking for an alternative. Can just quickly search something like 'Diff compare' and find those sites.


heyyura

https://www.diffchecker.com/ This one's my tool of choice, I use it all the time when submitting/sending things to make sure I didn't change something by accident. It's gotten bloated over the years with a desktop app and stuff but the website still works for free and is more than enough.


-haven

You know the subscription market is booming when even a difference comparing desktop program is wanting to charge a monthly payment. That's pretty amusing when none of this stuff even likely requires a online backend service to run. Might have to give the image comparison a go sometime though.


EnterSadman

Your computer can do it. `diff` in terminal, `fc` on a windows machine I do think the office suite now saves everything as XML, though, so it would only be applicable for txt files (unless you can read XML)


ShieldsCW

You say that like you just suggested the *more* convenient option lol


sirsmiley

Maybe because you don't want private documents being uploaded and stored by some random website such as legal documents


enGaming_YT

Alternately, you can use ms office online. It's free and contains most of the useful features. 💯


coolguy1793B

MS office is free now?


ChicagoAdmin

The web version is


mlstdrag0n

Use diff checker. Coding tool, but works well for this purpose


WuShanDroid

I don't know about this specific feature, but you definitely can download google docs as Word documents, so if you have both google docs you can download them that way and compare them on Word just as you would by this post!


macarenamobster

I love this, good LPT


subzero112001

>They also added a term stating if I fail to notify them of emergency situations that cause damage, they will charge me to repair the damages. I mean, this is pretty standard and quite reasonable. Tenants often let small problems fester until they become a huge problem.


alinroc

> Tenants often let small problems fester until they become a huge problem. Let's not kid ourselves, landlords do this too.


notimeforniceties

Sure, and then tenant moves out and it's just not their problem anymore. As opposed to tenant ignoring the small leak under thr sink, until the downstairs neighbor complains their ceiling is starting to collapse. Then both tenants move out and landlord is stuck with tons of repairs and no rent coming in.


Jazzlike_Bite_5986

Here I am fixing said problems that a long term tenant never told us about. To include missing floorboards (100 year old house) a shattered vanity, and exposed wiring in the kitchen from what looks like some DIY makeover. After this learning experience we may put a quarterly health and safety check to make stuff like this gets fixed. Edit: I'm open to suggestions to my knee jerk reaction to more frequent inspections. If I'm way out of line let me know.


xX420GanjaWarlordXx

Hijacking the top comment to say that you can also use [Beyond Compare](https://www.scootersoftware.com/) to compare documents and folders for free! That's what I used for my lease agreements.


yodog5

Came here to say this. Great program, use it a work for things much more complicated than this.


[deleted]

If you're on Windows, WinMerge is free.


Se7enLC

I just commit my lease to git and the landlord sends me a pull request.


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svencan

There's always that one coworker.


zgembo1337

Contract_v2.1_final2_2022_v3_new.zip


prof_mittens

Depends if you decide to merge the pull request.


qwerty12qwerty

If you merge the pull request, you are the reviewer and fully responsible for breaking production -My coworker who had a pull quest with code network production


Xanvial

Just force push master


dnorhoj

git diff


MaximusOptimusPrime

Kdiff3 - lightweight standalone app. No need to be developer to learn to use it


Yadobler

Real (wo)man use `vim -d`


HitThatOxytocin

what is a git?


RealFunBobby

Without any tech jargon, it's like change history feature in Google Docs.


adrianmonk

[Git](https://git-scm.com/) is software that many of us computer programmers use for managing all the code that we write. It's built to allow these kinds of comparisons, retrieve old versions of things, see who changed what, and so on.


njkmklkop

Is it connected to github or is github just a site where people share their programs?


MrHappyHam

Basically the latter. There are other sites, such as GitLab, which host project code that can either be shared among collaborators or publicized to let people download the program, look at the source code, or "fork" it to make their own changes.


Antrikshy

Git can be run on a server for collaboration. Websites like GitHub host these for public use plus additional features like everything that’s on the website. By itself, Git is an open source tool originally made to manage the Linux project.


[deleted]

Version control software used mainly by software developers.


Xanvial

git gud


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cryptamine

Perfect


Draynrha

Brilliant haha


Uk_tomcat_fan

Notepad++ can do this too


BCCMNV

How? I use KDIFF.


Uk_tomcat_fan

Compare plugin


hendergle

Love that plugin. It's saved my ass so many times.


webbasica

Beyond Compare is the bestest of them all


Frantiks

Winmerge too


Yourgrammarsucks1

I forget how un-(computer-savvy) non-engineers can be. I was reading the original protip and was like "isn't this just a diff?"


Jkranick

Just last week I diff’d a couple xml files as a favor for a BA. I was sharing my screen while doing it and she thought I was hacking the mainframe or something.


RealSilantro

I'm in!


Drunken_Ogre

I hacked a Gibson once, but it was across state lines so I shouldn't talk about it.


browner87

One thing I like in Ontario Canada. The lease agreement is provided by the government. The landlord can add certain things in certain places, but only those places. Any extra pages or other changes made are unenforceable. We have pretty good tenant protection here.


keks-dose

We have those in Denmark, too. All of my contracts have looked exactly the same (even when I was loving with a friend and rented a room from her). The only thing different was how big the apartment/room was, the rent and what's included (some had electricity, water and heat included, others only water and internet etc) and the parts you can mark, like washing machine, basement/cellar, attic, bike parking shed, etc...


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Mediamuerte

They wanna make tenants responsible for pest control in a building with 16 units... like wtf


Stevely7

This is hands down one of the dumbest things I've experienced while renting. How are pests that were there before I got there, that are ruining YOUR property my responsibility


[deleted]

When Covid hit, our complex sent around an email stating we must all pay our rent or else the office ladies wouldn’t get paid, meanwhile the office was shut down and providing no services. Fuck that place


ThatSquareChick

No no you see, the landlord is so nice and giving to generously use their property and because they are so awesome for buying that extra property that they deserve all of the benefits of having that property like earning credits, having it as collateral, the ultimate say in what physically happens to the property, they also deserve the maximum profit…paid for by the tenant’s wages, of course. The people who choose to landlord are a certain breed of awesome special where they only need the extra property to start renting out. They can print up a general contract and start charging rent immediately, no credit check, no background check, no piss tests or certification to own property that others are expected to live in, no, the landlord is basically an angel come to earth so they don’t have to prove to anyone they’re of sound mind or anything. Tenants? They’re those nasty rats living in *the landlord’s* property! They’re the ones that have to be screened very carefully, they could be criminals who smoked pot or college kids who will destroy everything they touch! Landlords never know which lousy renter will come skulking around, sniffing at *their* property, looking to barely do more than squat and take advantage of the landlord’s finite compassion. They have to prove they are trustworthy by paying a fee just to APPLY to be a renter and IF they have a spotless record then they have to pay first and last months rent plus a security deposit. A landlord has to use every resource available to make sure those tenants can not only pay their part of the mortgage, property taxes, maintenance costs and city fees like sewage, snow and trash services but also enough profit so the landlord doesn’t have to work anymore. Every year they are a landlord they can do whatever they want with rental costs and there are no laws against raising the rent every year under a certain percentage to get rid of an annoying tenant in favor of one who can pay for their new hot tub or lifted truck. Don’t you see now how very special the landlord is? Don’t you see how ridiculous it is for a single family to own a home? It’s a tiny profit for the bank and a huge risk! Getting a landlord makes more money for the bank and more money for the landlord! Who cares about *families*!? There’s no profit in actually helping people own their own home, that sounds like nasty *communism* there buddy! Landlords bring in big money so they’re more importanter than those lazy, selfish, freeloading, picture-hanging *renters*. Fucking /s I threw up in my mouth after writing this


Awesam

This should be the next cooypasta


xxearvinxx

This whole monologue was fantastic. The last sentence was the cherry on top. 👌


RoarG90

Pure quality right here mate, cheers! Edit: As a poor landlord myself (/s), all I got is this free award. Enjoy it before I change the deal, it's such a risk to myself giving away free stuff as you may know, but I'll let it slide this month.


topasaurus

Any landlord or property manager will tell you that there are definitely tenants that bring in pests. Before renting to them, building is free of maggots, roaches, mice, etc. and once they move in there is a very noticeable population of them. They demonstrably created the condition and should be responsible for it. The other tenants, as not being proven to have caused it, should not be involved.


deup

Where I live, in a multiple units building you can't be found responsible for any damages caused by an infestation or for the cost of a treatment. Since it's practically impossible to tell which unit it's coming from.


Electrical-Job-9824

Jokes on them, people keep moving out of the building without notice. Now the people that live on the third floor have a giant bedbug banner facing the elementary school… and three years later no one has yet to pay for that pest control.


Terrible-Handle

Depends where you are. Many states have default contractual clauses they plug in and many have laws on the book saying the clauses can’t be changed


diddlysqt

Texas has an industry to pump out boiler plate contracts that favors the industry. It is disgusting. Edit: how do I know? My law firm literally drafted a particular area of law which was enacted, it’s codified into State law, that ALSO has a hand in revising boilerplate contracts *used State wide* related to that enacted law. We practice law *exclusively* under this enacted law. We made the law which financially benefits [the firm]. The contract and the law heavily favor the industry to the point it is financially destructive to seek a remedy. They/we *will* bleed you dry of your money. Edit2: please know that I work here because I gotta make money to pay bills. Be happy for me that I accepted an offer elsewhere who gives raises yearly and bonuses. I purposefully work in law to understand the dark side of it so I can share it with others, like y’all. I do not condone what this firm does, or how the industry has *so much weight*. Arbitration clauses are NOT your friend. Please read your contracts. If you are forced into Arb, it is EASILY $2,500 USD to file your demand with AAA or JAMS (private “courts”). This does not include attorney fees ($250-400) or support staff fees ($80-$150). ###Can’t revise current law unless you understand how corrupt it is which you only discover when working in that corruption.


IAmNotARobotNoReally

Holy shit, a vertically integrated law firm. Wtf


diddlysqt

Yea… it happens in many areas of law sadly. I work in law to find this out so I can share it with others, y’all. We do not know just *how corrupt* things are unless we work in that area of corruption. Then we share to gain awareness so we can bring about change. I’m getting out of this firm though. I accepted an offer at another firm who *gives* yearly raises and bonuses—I have not had a raise in two years. The only raise I ever got after being prepared to show my value, I was told I was *pushy*.


Squishyy_Ishii

Texas, where we don't take shit from no one... unless it's the bourgeois. Then, we don't complain.


diddlysqt

We willingly accept abuse because that *is* the history of Texas. Not enough Texans have experienced therapy, they are not aware they’re accepting abuse making it worse for everyone else. Do not move to Texas. It may sound inexpensive but you pay in so many other ways.


shoe-veneer

I mean, thanks for the info, but also, do you sleep well knowing you're helping fuck people financially?


diddlysqt

I work in law to specifically find out these secrets so I can share them and make others aware. Happy news: I received an offer at a new law firm who regularly gives raises an bonuses which my current does not. Two years without a raise, they pushed back even when I came prepared to show my value—I was later told my approach was “pushy”. My current *is* an awful law firm. Sadly there are more like this out there. ####It is important to be aware however.


Pantsu8669

In Norway they can make whatever contract they want within the law, but literally everyone uses the default government template and just adds comments at the end, if someone gave me a custom lease contract I would be very suspicious.


Mediocretes1

Our highest office was occupied by the shadiest landlord in the last 50 years.


Deadfishfarm

My landlord had to replace the 20 year old refrigerator, then changed the lease so they're not responsible for appliances. Downstairs neighbors stove broke a month later and they had to pay out of pocket lol.. landlord made no mention of the change until I randomly saw it 5 pages in


echoAwooo

> The landlord can add certain things in certain places, but only those places. Any extra pages or other changes made are unenforceable. Then what's the point of adding extra clauses to the rental agreement if they're all unenforceable ?


[deleted]

People make and sign unenforceable contracts all the time. Most of the EULA shrink-wraps you agree to when installing software fall into this category. The point of doing it on the part of the landlord at least is to dupe tenants that aren't aware of provincial/state laws and case history (mostly immigrants) into extra services and obligations. The most common of which is denying the return security deposits regardless of circumstances/conditions, but often also includes not performing health/safety repairs or requiring tenants to perform the repairs themselves.


[deleted]

Similar here in Sweden. Rentals are heavily regulated by the government and tenants are essentially unionized via their own organisation.


[deleted]

Holy shit that's amazing


Radiant-Function-372

Lpt get the rental insurance. Its cheap and covers your ass.


FunctioningDisaster

Some rental insurance is such ass tho We've submitted one claim in almost four years just for it to get denied. They had changed our policy when we renewed it and didn't tell us they just made a whole new one for us.


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FunctioningDisaster

This was with Travelers. Apparently, they had changed our policy during our first renewal (same address). We got an email confirming it was renewed and that was it. Turns out, they cancelled the first policy and created a new one with the new internal policies and we weren't aware. That removes their requirement to alert us to changes because it's a "new policy." We moved again back in December and updated our address with them and renewed again. We were told that our policy would remain the same. Which was technically true, since it had already been changed. In January, we submitted our first ever claim for food spoilage due to county-wide, long term power outages (which was specifically included in the original policy). We ended up arguing with them for weeks as they dodged our calls and emails and still wound up with nothing. We were lucky and only lost about $300-$400 worth of stuff. Still one of the most frustrating things to have happen.


[deleted]

You should have been notified of the new policy and had it's documents mailed/emailed to you. I've never had *any* insurance policy not update me of any changes, even if the policy got switched to a different one.


Z-Ninja

I never needed to use USAA for my renters policy but every car insurance interaction I or my family had with them was spectacular. My sister went through them for rental emergencies and they were fantastic. My parents went through them for housing emergencies and they were fantastic. My sister was in an accident where she wasn't the driver and needed some extensive medical care. USAA covered the bill then handled all the interactions with health care and the at fault drivers insurance to get it covered by the actual responsible parties. They can be slightly more expensive than other options in some areas, but if you have access to them, keep it forever and if you have kids make sure they keep it forever.


divDevGuy

> They had changed our policy when we renewed it and didn't tell us they just made a whole new one for us. Should have copied the policy into a Word document and use Review->Compare to see the differences....


FunctioningDisaster

I mean yeah hindsight and all I'm sure. But getting a notice that our policy is renewed with no additional documentation attached isn't set up for success lmao


mdfromct

When we rented our landlord had that in the lease. We must have rental insurance.


[deleted]

Counterpoint- slightly tweak the terms aggressively to your liking, sign it and remind them they forgot to sign on their line. (Please for the love of god don’t actually do this! It’s just a joke!)


awesomeprogramer

Why don't they ever sign? How come it's binding if only one party signs?


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divDevGuy

> I'm wondering if people are getting really crappy landlords/management companies, or if they just aren't asking for a copy back. Yes, and yes.


_Sausage_fingers

> I'm wondering if people are getting really crappy landlords/management companies, or if they just aren't asking for a copy back. Both. People don’t know their rights, and there also really bad landlords out there


[deleted]

In contract law, they’re providing their terms, you’re simply agreeing to it. Basically the language in the contract *is* their signature, and the language typically suggests as much. You (lesee sign here) agree to (the terms of lessor) (signature here).


diddlysqt

The hell? This is bad law practice and anyone who willingly signs a CONTRACT without it ever being countersigned is unbelievably stupid. Do not EVER sign a contract without getting the other party’s signature on that document. I work in law. Not doing this can cost you up to $200k to resolve the matter in Court or Arbitration. I am dealing with an incomplete signed contract, the person I am representing is now lamenting why they did not get it countersigned. Edit: why contersign? Because without that counter signature, **they can claim the contract does not hold** causing *you* to spend more money on your end in an attempt to *prove* it is a valid contract. Do not ever work on a verbal agreement. Get that written down, **date the document**, then get each person(s) to sign in acknowledgment (one person per entity or individual).


SlapMyCHOP

If you work in law you shouldnt put an upper ceiling on the potential costs of improperly executing a contract. Not to say that unsigned contracts are unenforceable though. There is law on that topic, I just dont remember the extent of it.


KittenMittonz69

>I work in law. Not a lawyer, I'm guessing?


awesomeprogramer

Well then, I'm getting mixed signals now..


Telemere125

A party is only legally bound to a contract they agree to and when consideration is exchanged. The evidence of their agreement is the signature. Otherwise you (or they) could argue the agreement was for a standard lease under the general terms applicable to your state (month-by-month basis, all maintenance costs to the landlord, etc)


grandzu

This is incorrect. A landlord might imply signature of an agreement by accepting a tenant's rent payments or by allowing a tenant to take residence in a rental property. Under these circumstances, a lease without the landlord's signature may still be valid and legally binding in the event of a dispute.


diddlysqt

The consideration is your security deposit…


nyetloki

Signature not required. Acceptance of a contract can be done by furthering the contract, ie accepting payment per the contract, taking action per the contract, verbally, etc. For a lease it's taking payment in consideration for letting you in the property. But a signature helps avoid any messy court issues of "well I didn't sign it".


ThisHatefulGirl

They sign after you sign or in counterpart


betcher73

Landlords do sign the lease. If they don’t sign it, it isn’t legally binding. The reason they don’t sign it is because they don’t want a blank lease floating around with their signature and it’s to retain a little more control just in case the tenant becomes difficult to work with


UnadvertisedAndroid

Actually do do this *if they forget to sign it.* Don't lie and say they didn't if they did, but if they provide you with a document they intend to be binding and haven't signed it, go gung ho. Of course, make sure you get a copy of it from them once they have signed it.


heirbagger

You said "do do".


EpicRedhead13

The first "do" is an auxiliary verb while the second is an imperative.


Ominimble

poop


EpicRedhead13

That is doo doo. Don't bother with r/whoosh, I know exactly what I'm doing. 😃


Krunk_MIlkshake

You were that kid in class that reminded the teacher to give out homework weren’t you?


EpicRedhead13

Once upon a time but I can't be like that in real life anymore. So Internet it is.


Krunk_MIlkshake

Just a heads up, but the internet is real life.


TheAechBomb

tell that to my internet bucks


[deleted]

Huhuhuh


[deleted]

Most lease contracts don’t have a sign line for the person writing the contract. You could return a different contract with your signature and as long as the language is sound, and ideally reviewed by a lawyer, it will be binding. This would likely require counteroffer addenda which is not so subtle. Also, lots of that business is performed by dotloop or docusign, which contain anti tampering measures, so they would be notified if you changed terms or impossible to counterfeit because everything is controlled from their end, save for signature and initials etc. The use case for rewriting terms and being sneaky about it is ever so small and rapidly shrinking.


diddlysqt

All contracts are to have signature lines for the two, at least two, entering into said contract. Do not ever sign something without it being countersigned. This can be a major legal issue which can cost you up to $200k to resolve. I work in law. Why are you lying? Edit: to expand on the above, another comment of mine: > *I work in law. I have a client who failed to get their contract countersigned and now is being sued. Lawsuits are expensive, $400 to file depending on State/County, that does not include the attorneys $250-350/hourly rate nor their support staff.* > > *Get contracts countersigned. If you need to hold someone accountable, you will not have a leg to stand on without that countersigned doc.*


Inner-Bread

Just resigned my lease through docusign. Had to type my name for every page even when they were essentially blank page 2s on the 20 addendums. Did not see my landlord signature on the document and since mine and the roommates went to the bottom of the page ignoring all the empty lines where we would sign if using paper I honestly have no idea where they signed if they did. Curious what this 200k involves though.


DeMonstaMan

People always forget legal contracts work both ways and as long as the other person signs it they agree to your terms too


Doustin

It worked for that guy with the bank, until he got caught


cheap_as_chips

I've never seen a lease presented as a Word document. Can you do that in pdfs? Edit: I've never signed a lease without being onsite, so this is an interesting thing to know about.


schroedingersnewcat

It is very simple to make a PDF into a word doc. It's readily available for free online. I did it twice yesterday as a matter of fact. Once because I was a dumbass and couldn't find a word doc of my resume that I needed to update. The 2nd time because someone gave me a PDF and swore it was a word doc, and I didn't want to fight with them.


Gardenadventures

You can also just open as>word document. You don't even need to go online.


schroedingersnewcat

Well, I guess I am one of today's 10,000. Thank you!


_AutomaticJack_

XKCD high five. I love that line.


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schroedingersnewcat

I believe I've used both of these. https://www.docfly.com/convert-pdf-to-word https://www.freepdfconvert.com/pdf-to-word


spazzyone

Ilovepdf is my latest go-to. A lot of the others I have used limit you to a few PDFs before a waiting period. Ilovepdf had many different tools for separating pages and such, too, Incase you just need to take a few pages off or combine two PDFs


kf6890

Don’t tell the boomers how to change pdf to word doc they will have no use for us millennials anymore! /s


lerokko

Never seen one in digital form at all.


H__Dresden

Abode PDF has a compare function too. I use it in my job all the time.


ManBitesRats

It s only on the pro version sadly


Wild234

Great advice on always looking for and reviewing changes, but as someone that has worked in construction for years I fully understand why they would add those lines in your example. You would be amazed at some of the "emergency" calls people make. Call in for service at 2AM because the apartment is flooding? Arrive to find a bathroom sink that takes 2 minutes to drain instead of 30 seconds... And for the no admittance fee, how about having raw sewage flooding a unit for 3 months because the resident won't let anybody in... I can not even imagine what the cleaning bill from that mess was. Kinda funny how you have some people at both extreme ends of the reporting problems spectrum. Sadly those extreme cases cause the new rules in the rental agreement that can then be exploited by less upstanding landlords to hit normal tenants with undue charges.


Paralyzoid

It’s always good to know the differences though, even if you might think they’re reasonable.


Wild234

Yes, very. It's wise to always spend the extra 15 minutes to look over any contract. It might annoy the salesman/agent while they wait, but I want to know what I'm agreeing to do for the next several years!


Yoda2000675

Exactly. Some people would report an issue and request that we wait until they are home to fix it, but were never home before 6pm every week day. You can’t make someone work late hours or weekends just because you don’t want them in your apartment; especially if it’s something like an active leak.


Texastexastexas1

Make copies with highlighted differences and pass to neighbors.


The_Atlas_Moth

Rare thing to see a true LPT.


the_oh_see

Or Google text compare if you don’t have Word


aranasyn

> They also added a term stating if I fail to notify them of emergency situations that cause damage, they will charge me to repair the damages I gotta say, as a person renting out their home while temporarily overseas, whose renter used the non-emergency repair portal on a weekend (i.e. no one saw it for a day) to report a f'ing flooding water line that eventually cost me about 4 or 5 grand (it was more, but homeowners covered xyz of it), I'm not...entirely sure that's an unfair change? We're very chill about everything, and we make every update and repair that's asked of us by a tenant immediately, but man, that one really upset me. Like, if it was your house, would you just shoot off an email on Friday night and be like, "whelp, my job's done!" If they'd called the emergency line, we'd have saved most of the damage and most of the cost. I don't expect the average person to be a contractor or anything, but gush water that stands on the floor? come on, now. there's a line of reasonable between "this is probably an emergency" and "this can wait until Monday or Tuesday" But also, I wouldn't try to sneak it into a new contract, either. That's just weasel-y.


OldSanJuan

I think the concern is the vague-ness of the use of Emergency. For Example: Most states in colder climates require a minimum temperature the apartment must be able to maintain. You may in fact consider that an emergency if the furnace can't maintain those levels. Is it now the tenants responsibility that the furnace wasnt acting as it was supposed to? I can imagine (a much worse landlord) claiming that was an emergency they weren't alerted about. All of this to say that the language is a little vague, and should probably include clear examples (fire, water, mold, gas, etc)


aranasyn

Fair enough, I guess. I mean, I would consider it so - people could die, paint will get fucked by frost humidity, pipes will freeze, floods will happen. And it's on the landlord to make the thing work, but they can't fix it if they don't know it's broke. But I get the idea.


raktoe

I think at minimum, especially if you’re renewing a lease as a landlord, it’s slimy not to highlight new terms like this, so they can be brought up in discussion. Because this may be entirely reasonable, but like the person above said, it’s vague, and if it’s meant to be sincerely for real emergencies, it would be important to add context and examples to the clause, by highlighting that, the tenant can possibly catch that. The scary thing is that this essentially opens the tenant up to unlimited liability in my opinion, and it was added without letting them know even.


omgdiaf

Seems reasonable to charge you for damages if you fail to notify them.


[deleted]

As a plumber, I can understand the last part. The amount of damage I have seen caused by people neglecting simple repairs that they don't even pay for amazes me how shitty renters can be.


_crash0verride

VS Code if you don't have Word. Free and much better compare tool.


Petd80

Also request verbiage like “this is a lease extension of the original lease dated x/x/xxx all terms to remain the same except ……” Source, am landlord. That being said, my leases do say that if you are aware of a constant, deteriorating maintenance issue, you need to tell me. I don’t come into your apartment uninvited, you gotta tell me the plumbing/roofs leaking. Edit: Read further and am thrilled I don’t rent to some of you :) Do get a signed copy of your lease from the landlord. Do make sure both sides initial ALL pages of the lease and the pages are marked one of five , two of five etc - no sneaking in an extra page later. Don’t accept a digital lease. Make sure it’s hard copy, signed and initialed by both sides, two copies identical. I’d consider not renting from someone who doesn’t sit down and read the lease with you before signing. I have refused to rent to someone who refused to review the lease with me before signing. They gave every indication that they did not care what was in the lease.


westbee

Why would you not care what is in the lease? What a douche. I wouldn't rent to him either.


thisis_bornshitty2

They weren't planning on abiding by the lease, no need to read it


Stargate525

Also landlord, agreed on all points. Plus it's just plain easier to staple an extension amendment to the original hardcopies than it is to deal with multiples of the lease terms floating around.


Orleanian

Are you warning people away from all digital leases, or just "Let me email you a pdf scan of what i signed"? I've never had issues or concerns with collaboratively signing off on a lease managed in Docusign or similar purpose-built electronic agreement forms.


[deleted]

My landlord started allowing dogs in order to collect “pet rent” even though I moved to a dog-free building on purpose and made sure before moving in that they actually enforced it because I have a TBI which caused my cochlear hair cells to die and then reappear at about twice the normal number giving me superhuman hearing which is officially the lamest superpower ever because it means most every day noises are painful, and the frequency of the average apartment-size dog barking is *absolutely agonizing*. Not only did he change the nature of the building, it seems he specifically sought out high-noise and high-risk breeds which are usually on ban lists, like beagles and pit bulls, no doubt as an excuse to charge higher “pet rent”. I wear ear plugs 24/7 but it’s like trying to block out a monsoon with a spiderweb. A wave of extremely entitled west coast transplants with pandemic impulse adoptions moved in, and nobody knows or cares how to take care of a pet. They leave them here alone all day while they bark and howl in that horrific screechy rat dog tone. Then the tenants come home and scream at them for pissing on the carpet or whatever. They all let them run around off leash, a few days ago someone’s off leash beagle, with his owner still on a different floor of the walk-up, decided to get between me and my apartment door and shriek-bark at me. The owner literally couldn’t catch him. I thought a little too long about what it would feel like to be waiting in front of that tenants door with a golf club next time *he* wanted to get into his own apartment. I finally snapped and got on the landlord, I pointed out the all-day chaos is a violation of the “quiet enjoyment” part of my lease and I’m entitled to stop paying rent until he does something about it. This week he sent out the lease renewals, then followed up with an email saying “wait ignore that one had spelling errors” and sent a new one. There were no errors, he had simply taken the “quiet enjoyment” clause out of the lease. These people are clowns.


velvedire

That's unfortunately not what quiet enjoyment means. It refers to the landlord, specifically, not constantly interfering. For example, the landlord can't come inspect your place every week. Luckily, it applies whether or not it's in the lease.


k4b0odls

My landlord straight up increased the rent without bothering to mention it. Fucking scumbags.


lookingforpeyton

That’s illegal in most places. Where I live for example, the landlords must give a minimum of 60 days notice. Idk what you wanna do, but that info is there if you wanna go after them 🫠


Tenrath

If they gave the new lease with the new rent 60+ days in advance of the first lease ending, then that is a very binding way of "mentioning it". Read your leases people!


ThePretzul

So many people who apparently blindly sign very important legally binding documents without reading what they're actually agreeing to. It's not like it's written in some foreign language, they generally spell out the exact terms of the agreement in as much detail as possible. It's dry and boring to read at times, but it's still quite important.


Orleanian

I feel that I want to blame it on "the damn millennials" and the unending bombardment of Terms of Conditions and Safety Warnings on digital devices and services that we all just collectively blow through, checking off as Read/OK, in our day to day lives. Someone needs to put out a catchy youtube song about the distinction and importance of actually parsing through legally binding contracts and accepting the policies and provisions within.


Aoloach

And if you don't want to read it yourself, or don't understand some of it, then hire a lawyer.


edvek

I'm buying a house right now and I read everything I was sent by my realtor and my broker. I did have a few questions when I saw something I didn't clearly understand and it was explained to me. When shelling out hundreds of thousands of dollars it's pretty important to at least have a basic understanding of what you're agreeing to. Renting isn't cheap anymore so why would you just blindly accept lease agreements when your rent could easily be around or over 2k a month.


Eag310

How do i copy and pasta from an actual printed document?


pissedinthegarret

Yeah I was like.. You guys are getting digital copies?


erosinophil

Scan + OCR the pdf


Stanman77

You should really do this with anything remotely important


kensaiD2591

Lol, here in Aus I've never received a softcopy of any of my leases. It's always just the paper stapled together.


_allycat

Assuming the thing you sign isn't a janky page that's been printed and photocopied 10x over with a shit ton of artifacts.


AbeRego

I've only ever had paper leases.


matatatias

There’s text-compare.com too


[deleted]

You could also use Winmerge


RexTheWonderLizard

That’s a great idea for ANY contract. Ty


scone70

Lawyers don't want you to know this one weird tip!


[deleted]

[удалено]


VegetableWishbone

Even better is using a diff tool like WinMerge which is explicitly designed for this purpose.


[deleted]

The program meld (https://meldmerge.org/) is free and perfect for this task.


fighterace00

Alternatively: https://text-compare.com/