Lease dictionary
Fixed-term lease
A lease with a set start and end date - usually 12 months - locking in the rent for the term.
A fixed-term lease runs for a defined period, most often a year. During the term the rent can't change (unless an escalation clause says so) and the landlord generally can't end the tenancy without cause.
When the term ends, depending on the lease and state law it either ends, renews, or rolls into a month-to-month tenancy.
Watch out
Check what happens at the end of the term now, not in month 11 - automatic-renewal clauses with 60-day opt-out windows catch many renters.
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