Don’t Let ChatGPT Write Your Lease

Ask ChatGPT to write a lease for your new tenant, and you’ll likely be in trouble, and you won’t even know it… It’s not compliant with California law.

How do I know? A client did just that and brought me the lease to review after the tenant defaulted. I’m not an attorney, but she needs one… and I referred her.

Why California leases are different

California leases carry state-specific rules and disclosures that a generic lease can miss, including:

• Security deposit limits and return deadlines
• Rent increase caps and just-cause eviction notices for many properties under the Tenant Protection Act
• Required disclosures, such as bed bug information, flood risk and, for older homes, lead-based paint
• Local rules in cities with their own rent or eviction ordinances

What to do instead

Use a current California lease form from a reliable source, and have an attorney or an experienced property manager review it before your tenant signs. If you’d like us to handle the lease and the rest of the process, call me…

Originally published in The Trusted Advisor, July 2026.