Get Legal Advice & Learn Your Renters Rights
Whether you’re in a dispute with your landlord, about to sign a lease or looking to move out of your rented home or apartment, LegalShield’s flexible legal plan benefits can help you solve and prevent problems with your landlord, at a price that won’t break the bank.
Preserve your rights while renting
Whether it’s an issue related to signing your lease, living in a rental or terminating a lease agreement, an experienced lawyer can provide invaluable legal protection. Here are just a few of the common issues that our experienced provider lawyers handle:
Before you sign
- Is the lease agreement fair?
- Do you understand the terms and conditions?
- Is the landlord trying to take advantage of you?
As a LegalShield member, your lawyer can review a lease and give you the advice you need to sign with confidence.
While living in a rental
- Has your landlord violated the lease?
- Did your landlord fail to make necessary repairs?
- Are you having a dispute over subletting?
Your lawyer can contact your landlord to resolve disputes on your behalf.
Terminating a lease agreement
- Are you having an issue renewing your lease?
- Do you need to terminate your lease early?
- Is your landlord refusing to return your entire security deposit?
Your lawyer can work to resolve end of lease issues that could arise with your landlord.
A legal plan gives renters the power to push back
Renters have rights under federal and state law. Our experienced provider lawyers are here to advise you on how and when to exercise your rights. Select a topic to learn more:
Everyone knows lawyers charge hundreds of dollars per hour. That’s why people hesitate to contact attorneys even though they know getting sound legal advice could help them avoid messy legal disputes and save tons of money.
Imagine if you could call a lawyer to get advice on an unlimited number of legal matters, including 24/7 access for emergencies, for less than $1 per day. Well, you don’t have to imagine. You just have to join LegalShield.
- Have a simple question about your lease? Call your lawyer, it’s included.
- Need advice on how to negotiate a sublease with your landlord? Call your lawyer, it’s included.
- Wondering what you can do to resolve a dispute about late fees? Call your lawyer, it’s included.
Your monthly membership fee provides a powerful resource you can use to prevent legal problems and make life with a difficult landlord a breeze. With LegalShield on your side, you can get the legal help you need without a ridiculous legal bill at the end. In fact, you’ll only have to pay the small $24.95/month membership fee.
Signing a lease can be a big financial commitment that requires you to agree to a slew of terms and conditions written in confusing legal mumbo jumbo. Some landlords hope you don’t read the lease closely.
There is a simple solution to avoid stepping on legal landmines. Have a lawyer review the lease before you sign it. Join LegalShield and you can submit any documents up to 15 pages each, for less than $1 per day. A legal plan includes having a lawyer review the following documents, and many more, at no additional charge:
- Lease agreements
- Vendor contracts
- Financial statements
- Letters from or to your landlord
- Government or court documents
Signing a lease can be a big financial commitment that requires you to agree to a slew of terms and conditions written in confusing legal mumbo jumbo. Some landlords hope you don’t read the lease closely.
There is a simple solution to avoid stepping on legal landmines. Have a lawyer review the lease before you sign it. Join LegalShield and you can submit any documents up to 15 pages each, for less than $1 per day. A legal plan includes having a lawyer review the following documents, and many more, at no additional charge:
- Lease agreements
- Vendor contracts
- Financial statements
- Letters from or to your landlord
- Government or court documents
If you’re having a dispute with your landlord, a roommate, a vendor or really anyone, you can have your lawyer write letters on their firm letterhead or make calls on your behalf to negotiate settlements, resolve disputes or simply clarify confusing terms and conditions.
Here are some ways members use this plan benefit to help with their rental.
- Negotiate lease terms
- Settle disputes over property damage, noise complaints and more
- Handle eviction notices or other legal action
- Deal with property managers or problem neighbors
Should your landlord file a civil lawsuit against you, your plan includes legal defense services for you or your spouse. Each year of membership, through your fifth year, earns you additional lawyer trial defense and pre-trial preparation hours as follows.
YearPre-trial research hoursTrial hoursTotal attorney hours12.557.5602311712033.5176.51804423624054.5295.5300
A personal legal plan provides trial defense benefits with a certain number of pretrial and trial hours available if you are named in a covered civil action. Trial defense benefits are not available in all states and do not apply to pre-existing matters. For pre-existing matters a 25% Preferred Member discount is available off the hourly rate of a provider lawyer. See a legal plan contract for complete terms, coverage, amounts, and conditions in your state of residence.
25% discount
Your plan covers most common legal issues tenants face. For legal issues that are more complex, you can hire your provider lawyer to help you for 25% off of their standard hourly rates. If you’d like to confirm if your particular situation is covered by standard plan benefits, please call us 1-855-254-5852. We’re here 24/7/365, even on holidays, to serve our members.
MEMBERPerks
We partner with over 400 popular brands like Verizon, Costco, T-Mobile, and Amazon to offer our members exclusive discounts. Not only can you save thousands on legal services, you can save more money on the products and services you already use.
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Understand your rights and responsibilities as a renter
Did you know?
Many common lease terms, including the amount of rent, can be negotiated. For example, you can agree to maintain part of the property in exchange for a reduction in rent.
If a landlord refuses to rent to you based on sex, religion, race, etc., they can be fined up to $19,787 under the Fair Housing Act and the act requires them to provide certain accommodations to access and use the property if you’re disabled.
State and local laws often limit the security deposit a landlord can charge, and other key terms of a lease.
A lawyer familiar with the laws in your state can help find unlawful terms in your lease. Understanding what your landlord can and cannot do under the law is key to exercising your rights and protecting yourself.
A LegalShield plan lets you upload legal documents, such as a lease, right in our app. A lawyer familiar with leasing laws in your state will review and follow up with advice.
Seek legal advice to manage common renter challenges
Once you’re living in a rental unit, there are a variety of legal issues that can pop up along the way. A lawyer can be a big help with common challenges such as:
- Dealing with a landlord who has failed to make necessary repairs to take action.
- Negotiating a sublease or pet exception when it’s prohibited by the lease you signed.
- Settling a financial dispute if a roommate doesn’t pay and the landlord is seeking payment.
- Fighting an unlawful eviction.
- Ending your lease early without incurring financial penalties.
If you’re unsure of your rights or how to proceed, speaking to a lawyer can provide clarity and peace of mind.
End your lease without causing unnecessary legal problems
When your lease is coming to an end or you want to get out of a lease early, a variety of legal questions and complications can arise.
Do you have questions about any of these scenarios?
- How long does my landlord have to return my security deposit?
- How can I get my deposit funds back if my landlord refuses?
- Does my landlord have to renew my lease if I request it?
- What type of property damage allows my landlord to use my security deposit?
- Is there a way to end my lease early without paying penalties?
Whether your lease is expiring soon or you want to get out early, having a lawyer review your lease document will help you understand your obligations, and what options are available to you.
Once you’ve joined LegalShield, you can upload your lease for review or call your provider law firm right in our app.
How to protect your rights while renting
Select a topic to learn more:
Educate yourself
Enter a lease with confidence and get a clear understanding of common lease terms and conditions.
Get a great deal
Discover how to negotiate changes to fees and other standard terms.
Know your rights
Understand renter protection policies under federal, state and local law.
Protect your rights
Explore the 5 questions you should ask every landlord before you sign a lease.
Resources to make ending a lease easy
There are lots of moving parts at the end of a lease and you’d be well served by speaking with a lawyer to help you navigate your options and prevent unnecessary financial damage. In the meantime, check out these helpful articles, checklists and templates.
Security deposits
Many states require landlords to return security deposits within 14 days. What’s the story in your state?
Property damage
If your landlord is claiming you’ve caused property damage, there are powerful laws to protect you.
Early termination
Experienced attorneys can help you end your lease early without incurring financial penalties.
Renewals
If you stay in your rental after lease end, pay rent & your landlord accepts your payments, you may be in a new lease term?
Get access to an entire law firm in your state
Plans start at only $26.95/month
How LegalShield works
Finding solutions to your legal issues doesn’t have to be stressful, complicated or expensive. LegalShield puts the power of legal representation within reach of any individual, family, or business. We work hard to make it easy, simple, and affordable to get the legal help you need, when you need it.
FAQs
Instead of paying a lawyer by the hour, you pay a small fee (starting at $26.95/month) and have access to an independent lawyer that will provide a huge variety of legal services without a huge legal bill. Services like consultation with a lawyer, document review, drafting of debt collection letters and defense at civil trials are included as standard benefits. Using the plan just once can save you literally thousands of dollars.
Using the plan is as simple as signing up and contacting our team. Once you’re a member, customer support will connect you with an independent lawyer in your area who specializes in the specific legal issue with which you need help. Also, you can download our super-simple app to quickly access your legal benefits and member perks anytime.
You can use your plan as soon as your membership application is reviewed and your account is set up. The review process takes 12-24 hours (or less) from the moment you purchase your plan (on regular business days). Once accepted, you can be in contact with a lawyer and begin to use the plan benefits and member perks outlined in the membership agreement right away.
The average lawyer in the U.S. charges between $150-$400 per hour. If you use your membership for even just a few hours a year you could easily save over $1,000. If you have a bunch of small legal issues or one rather complicated issue, you can easily save multiple thousands of dollars over hiring a lawyer directly. Not to mention the stress you’ll save by having a lawyer on call instead of trying to handle legal issues yourself. Also, the lawyers in our network often help our members recover thousands of dollars of damages or avoid thousands of dollars in fees over what they would have experienced had they tried to resolve the legal issue themselves. Obviously every member and usage situation is different, but when used correctly, your membership can easily save significant amounts of money. Not to mention savings from our member perks.
Our Personal Plans are really family plans. You, your spouse or partner and your eligible dependents living at home, on select plans, are covered under one membership.
There is more information about this on the Personal Plans Coverage & Pricing Page.