Is there such a thing as a 5 or 10 year apartment lease agreement?

We have a great landlord. He's trying to sell the building though and so we've talked about signing a lease before actually selling so we're protected from major changes for that time period after potential new owners take over. I'm not worried about a lease term that's too long, as we have no intention of moving any time soon. Is there a maximum length? (I know I've heard of 100 year land leases- that's obviously excessive). I want to know if a 5 or 10 year term has been done before for a simple apartment rental. Thanks.

2007-04-12T07:20:36Z

See, I was reading on the residential tenancy act website (canada) and not seeing anything that indicated rent increases are allowed in a fixed term lease-if we're locked in for a certain amount for say 5 years, the new landlord can't raise the rent, just for the sake of raising it because he's now taken over. The max they'd be allowed to increase after the lease runs out is 2% plus inflation rate anyway. If the new landlords decide to tear down the building (old), a longer lease term would not be a liability for us anyway, or if they do major renovations. That's what I read anyway. But nothing anywhere about 'maximum' allowable lease term for apartments.

Anonymous2007-04-11T23:49:30Z

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I have not seen it done, but it is certainly possible. Commercial leases are generally at least 5 years so you can start by looking at those. The only problem that I see is if the new owner is not as great as your current landlord. You will have to account for rental increases during the course of a long term lease.

?2007-04-12T13:15:46Z

I heard somewhere that residential leases can't be signed for more than 3 or 5 years. Not sure where I heard it, so you'll probably want to double check... could be a local thing.

Anonymous2007-04-12T06:51:16Z

Sounds good to protect the current tenents..but if you decide to leave before then you could be liable for the balance of the lease trerm untill the apartment rents out.