Draft a Sublease Agreement in 30 Seconds

What a Sublease Agreement Actually Does

A sublease agreement is a three-party arrangement. You are the original tenant, the sublessor, and you are renting all or part of your premises to a new occupant, the sublessee. Sitting underneath the whole thing is your original lease with the landlord — the master lease. A sublet does not replace that master lease; it layers a second agreement on top of it, which is exactly why subletting trips people up.

Check Your Lease — Landlord Consent Comes First

Before you draft anything, read your master lease. Most residential and commercial leases require the landlord's written consent to sublet, and subletting without permission can be a breach that puts your own tenancy at risk. A good sublease agreement includes a landlord consent block so the owner can sign off in writing. If your lease is silent or restrictive, talk to your landlord and an attorney before you proceed.

Why the Sublessor Stays on the Hook

Here is the part subletters often miss. When you sublet, you do not hand off your obligations — you stay liable to the landlord for rent and damages under the master lease. If your sublessee stops paying or trashes the unit, the landlord still looks to you. That is why a sublease agreement spells out the sublessee's duties clearly and binds them to the terms of the original lease, giving you a contract you can enforce against your subtenant.

Terms That Belong in a Sublease

• Reference to the master lease — its date, the original parties, and a clause binding the sublessee to its terms.
• The premises — whether you are subletting the whole unit or just a room, and which shared spaces are included.
• Term and rent — sublet start and end dates and the monthly rent, which cannot run past your own lease.
• Security deposit — how much, who holds it, and the conditions for its return.
• Landlord consent — a signature block confirming the owner approves the sublet.

Common Sublease Mistakes

The big ones — subletting without the landlord's written consent, letting the sublet term run longer than your master lease, assuming you are off the hook once a subtenant moves in, and skipping a written deposit and condition record. A formatted sublease that names the master lease and includes a consent block closes most of these gaps, but it is a draft, not legal advice.

EZdoc produces a clean, professionally formatted sublease agreement in about 30 seconds. It is a draft to start from — have an attorney review the terms and confirm your lease permits subletting before signing.

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