Louisiana Residential Lease Agreement
A free Louisiana lease template, plus what Louisiana law requires a lease to include, attach or leave out — each with the statute. Use it as a starting point; landlords with unusual situations should have a lawyer review the final lease.
Disclosures Louisiana requires
| Application fee notice | Before accepting an application fee, the landlord must give the applicant written notice of: the fee amount; whether the landlord considers credit scores, employment history, criminal history or eviction records; and that the applicant may submit, in good faith, a statement of 200 words or less explaining financial hardship from a state or federally declared disaster or emergency and how it affected the applicant's credit, employment or rental history. The notice must mention the COVID-19 pandemic and hurricanes. It may be given electronically. The statute gives applicants no private lawsuit for violations. Applies to: rentals used as the tenant's primary residence, except owner-occupied buildings of four or fewer units Source: La. R.S. 9:3258.1 |
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Terms Louisiana law requires or controls
| Waiver of the 5-day notice to vacate | Before filing for eviction the landlord must give at least 5 days' written notice to vacate, unless the tenant waived that notice in a written clause in the lease. With a written waiver, the landlord may file for eviction immediately once the tenant's right to occupy ends. Applies to: all residential leases (waiver must be in writing in the lease) Source: La. C.C.P. art. 4701 |
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| Waiving the warranty against defects | A lease may waive the landlord's warranty against vices and defects only in clear and unambiguous language brought to the tenant's attention. The waiver does not work for defects the tenant did not know about but the landlord knew or should have known about, and in a residential lease it cannot waive the warranty for defects that seriously affect health or safety. Applies to: all residential leases Source: La. C.C. art. 2699 |
| Tenant assumes responsibility for condition | If the lease has the tenant assume responsibility for the premises' condition, the owner is not liable for injuries from defects to the tenant or the tenant's guests unless the owner knew or should have known of the defect, or was notified and did not fix it within a reasonable time. Applies to: leases containing an assumption-of-responsibility clause Source: La. R.S. 9:3221 |
| Subleasing and assignment | The tenant may sublease or assign unless the lease expressly prohibits it. A clause in a lease of real property that bans assigning, encumbering or subleasing is treated as banning all three unless the lease says otherwise, and is otherwise read narrowly against the landlord. Applies to: all leases Source: La. C.C. art. 2713 |
| Deposit use | The landlord may keep from the deposit only what is reasonably necessary to remedy the tenant's default or unreasonable wear, and must return the rest within one month after the lease ends, with an itemized statement of any amounts kept (due within one month, or within 15 days after that one-month date). The tenant must give a forwarding address at lease end. These return rules do not apply if the tenant abandons the premises without required notice or before the lease ends. Applies to: all residential leases with a deposit Source: La. R.S. 9:3251(A), (C) |
Clauses that are void in Louisiana
| Waiving deposit rights | Any waiver of the tenant's security deposit rights (return deadline, itemized statement, penalties) is null and void. Applies to: all residential leases Source: La. R.S. 9:3254 |
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| Liability for gross fault or physical injury | Any clause that, in advance, excludes or limits a party's liability for intentional or gross fault, or for causing physical injury to the other party, is null. Applies to: all contracts, including leases Source: La. C.C. art. 2004 |
| Health and safety defects | In a residential lease, a clause waiving the warranty for vices or defects that seriously affect health or safety is ineffective, as is a waiver covering defects the landlord knew or should have known about and the tenant did not. Applies to: all residential leases Source: La. C.C. art. 2699 |
| Limits on calling police or emergency help | A lease may not limit the tenant's or anyone's right to call police or emergency help in an emergency or after domestic abuse on the premises, or impose money or other penalties for doing so. Such a clause is null, void and unenforceable. Applies to: dwellings in buildings of six or more units (not buildings of ten or fewer units where the owner or lessor lives in one) Source: La. R.S. 9:3261.1(A), (C) |
| Waiving military termination rights | The right of active or reserve service members (and their spouses) to end a residential lease early for qualifying orders, discharge, government quarters, service injury or death, with capped early-termination rent and full deposit return, cannot be waived or changed by agreement under any circumstances. Applies to: all residential leases Source: La. R.S. 9:3261(E) |
Format and delivery rules
| Oral or written | A lease may be oral or written. Some protections apply only if written: for example, the tenant's waiver of the 5-day notice to vacate must be in a written lease. Applies to: all leases |
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| Copy of lease | No Louisiana statute requires the landlord to give the tenant a signed copy of the lease, or sets font-size, plain-language or translation rules for residential leases. Applies to: all residential leases |
Fill in the lease
Nothing you type leaves your browser. Bracketed items are yours to complete; clauses marked as required by Louisiana law must be written to meet the rule shown above.
1. Parties. This lease is between [landlord name] ("Landlord") and [tenant name(s)] ("Tenant"). Landlord's address for notices: [landlord notice address].
2. Property. Landlord rents to Tenant the home at [rental address], including [parking, storage, appliances included].
3. Term. The lease begins on [start date] and ends on [end date]. [If month-to-month instead: the tenancy continues month to month until either side gives the written notice Louisiana law requires.]
4. Rent. Rent is $[monthly rent] per month, due on the [due day] day of each month, paid by [payment method] to [where to pay].
5. Late fee. If rent is not received by [late day], a late fee of $[late fee] is due. This fee must comply with Louisiana law (No statute; AG tenant guide).
6. Security deposit. Tenant pays a security deposit of $[deposit amount] (Louisiana law sets no maximum; La. R.S. 9:3251-3254). Landlord will return it, minus lawful deductions with any required itemized list, within the time Louisiana law sets (La. R.S. 9:3251(A), as amended by Acts 2026, No. 63 (HB 292), eff. Aug. 1, 2026).
7. Utilities. Tenant pays: [utilities tenant pays]. Landlord pays: [utilities landlord pays].
8. Occupants and guests. Only these people may live in the home: [names of all occupants]. Guests may stay up to [guest limit] unless Landlord agrees in writing.
9. Pets. [No pets allowed / Pets allowed: describe, plus any pet deposit or fee]. Assistance animals for people with disabilities are not pets and are handled under fair housing law.
10. Repairs and maintenance. Landlord keeps the home safe and fit to live in and makes repairs required by law. Tenant keeps the home clean, reports problems promptly in writing, and pays for damage beyond normal wear and tear.
11. Landlord entry. Landlord may enter for repairs, inspections or showings after giving the notice Louisiana law requires, except in an emergency.
12. Subletting. Tenant may not sublet or assign this lease without Landlord's written consent, which [will / will not] be unreasonably withheld.
13. Ending the lease. At the end of the term, [the lease ends / the lease renews month to month] unless either side gives written notice at least [notice days] days before the end date, and never less than Louisiana law requires.
14. Waiver of the 5-day notice to vacate. (Write this clause to meet Louisiana law: see "Waiver of the 5-day notice to vacate" above (La. C.C.P. art. 4701).)
15. Waiving the warranty against defects. (Write this clause to meet Louisiana law: see "Waiving the warranty against defects" above (La. C.C. art. 2699).)
16. Tenant assumes responsibility for condition. (Write this clause to meet Louisiana law: see "Tenant assumes responsibility for condition" above (La. R.S. 9:3221).)
17. Subleasing and assignment. (Write this clause to meet Louisiana law: see "Subleasing and assignment" above (La. C.C. art. 2713).)
18. Deposit use. (Write this clause to meet Louisiana law: see "Deposit use" above (La. R.S. 9:3251(A), (C)).)
19. Disclosures attached. Landlord has given Tenant these disclosures required by Louisiana law: Application fee notice. [Attach each one.]
20. Lead paint (homes built before 1978). If the home was built before 1978, Landlord has given Tenant the federal lead-based paint disclosure and the EPA pamphlet "Protect Your Family From Lead in Your Home."
21. Whole agreement. This lease and its attachments are the whole agreement. If any part is not allowed by law, the rest still applies. Changes must be in writing and signed by both sides.
Landlord: [landlord name] Signature: ____________ Date: [date signed]
Tenant: [tenant name(s)] Signature: ____________ Date: [date signed]
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General legal information, not legal advice. Laws change and local rules can differ; check the linked official source or talk to a lawyer about your situation.