Most leases for rental property have a clause that state that the lease can be terminated at the landlord's discretion if anything you've stated is not true. Suppose there was a law that protected the renter in the same way? Ever gone to a rental property that had a posh rental office and overly friendly rental representative that gave you a tour of the most beautiful model apartment you've ever seen? These people are good at what they do! They will certainly leave an impression on you that you just visited a top-notch, customer-friendly landlord that surely would not misrepresent himself.

It is not until the day AFTER you sign your lease that you find that you've been suckered into a contract that you probably won't be able to get out of. Depending on the state or county that you've moved to, it may take a little longer than just one day before your landlord feels free to diss you. Typically, this isn’t because they are nice people. It is usually because some states and counties give rights to citizens to terminate a contract within a certain number of days AFTER signing.

I once moved to a property that promised all types of amenities only to find out that what was NOT disclosed during the rental agent's spiel was that each one of those amenities was considered an add-on to my rent. Single-family homes and condos cannot be sold without complete disclosure about the additional fees involved for community amenities and I really don't see why renters don't have the same protection. Do you?

Some properties in Maryland, for example, list washers and dryers as amenities in print, but are under no obligation to let you know there is a charge of $100 monthly for washers and dryers if you have not ever seen their printed advertisements. Suppose you just drove by the property, stopped in and you were quoted $1,000 a month as the rent on a one-bedroom. Since the one-bedroom in the model the agent shows you includes a washer and dryer in the apartment, would you be surprised to find that a few days before you move in that the rent is actually $1,100 monthly? Would you be surprised to find that the place you rented is $1,000 a month, but it isn't one of the apartments that comes with a washer and dryer?

Some additional gotchas are:

(1) no utilities are included
(2) you pay utilities, but they are not based on your actual usage
(3) fitness centers shown on the tour cost extra
(4) community center nearby for our residents
(5) amenity fees required by all
(6) new carpet is considered an upgrade and a premium must be added
(7) sound-proofing can be achieved by upgrading the carpet/padding
(8) painting can be done for additional decorator fee
(9) parking is additional if you have more than one car
(10) garbage/trash collection is not included

Truth in leasing is long overdue.