Nevada Lease Agreement Requirements

Nevada Lease Agreement Requirements

What a written rental agreement must contain — and what is void even after both parties sign it

This page covers the landlord–tenant lease. If you are looking for what goes in a management agreement between an owner and a property manager, that is a different document — see property management contracts.

The governing section is NRS 118A.200, and it was amended in the 2025 session. Several requirements below are new enough that most lease templates in circulation do not yet reflect them.

Signing and Copies

The agreement must be signed by the landlord or their agent and by the tenant or their agent (NRS 118A.200(1)). The landlord must give the tenant one copy free of cost at the time the agreement is executed, and further copies on request within a reasonable time, for which a reasonable fee may be charged (NRS 118A.200(2)).

The Fifteen Required Subjects

A written rental agreement must contain provisions relating to all of the following (NRS 118A.200(3)):

• Duration of the agreement.
• Amount of rent — stated in the manner required by subsection 6, below — and the manner and time of payment.
• Occupancy by children or pets.
• Services included with the rental.
• Fees which are required, and the purposes for which they are required.
• Deposits which are required, and the conditions for their refund.
• Charges for late or partial payment of rent, or for a dishonored check.
• The landlord’s inspection rights.
• A listing of the persons, or number of persons, who are to occupy the dwelling.
• Respective responsibilities for utility charges.
• A signed record of the inventory and condition of the premises under the tenant’s exclusive custody and control.
• A summary of NRS 202.470 — the public nuisance abatement section, under which a court may order a nuisance abated and impose a civil penalty of between $500 and $5,000.
• How the tenant may report a nuisance, or a building, safety or health code violation, to the appropriate authorities.
• The tenant’s right to display the flag of the United States (NRS 118A.325).
• The tenant’s right to display religious or cultural items (NRS 118A.327).

New in 2025: Rent Must Be One All-In Figure

Everywhere the agreement states the rent, it must be set out as a single figure representing the maximum total periodic rent, including any mandatory fees charged to the tenant on top of base rent (NRS 118A.200(6)). The landlord may then not charge periodic rent exceeding that figure (NRS 118A.200(7)).

There is a narrow exception (NRS 118A.200(8)) for electricity, natural gas or water where the utility cannot contract directly with the tenant, and for master-metered water. Using it requires the single figure to carry an asterisk or reference symbol at least half the font size of the figure itself, pointing to a statement on the same page that explains the arrangement and names the utility. Anything short of that and the exception is not available.

This is the provision most likely to catch out an owner using a lease drafted before 2025 — the practice of listing base rent and adding mandatory monthly fees elsewhere in the document no longer complies.

A Nonconforming Agreement Is Unlawful

It is unlawful for a landlord, or anyone authorized to enter into a rental agreement on their behalf, to use a written agreement that does not conform to NRS 118A.200 — and any provision that contravenes the section is void (NRS 118A.200(9)). This is not a technicality with no consequence attached.

The Double-Size Warning on a Self-Managed Single-Family Lease

This is the requirement that applies specifically to owners who manage their own property. A written rental agreement for a single-family residence that is not signed by an authorized agent of the landlord who, at the time of signing, holds a property management permit under NRS chapter 645 must carry a disclosure at the top of the first page, in a font at least twice the size of any other font in the agreement (NRS 118A.200(4)).

The disclosure must state both of these things:

• That the rebuttable presumptions in NRS 205.0813 and NRS 205.0817 apply — that the tenant is presumed not to have lawful occupancy — unless the agreement is notarized or signed by a chapter 645 permit holder and includes the landlord’s current address and telephone number; and
• That the agreement is nonetheless valid and enforceable between landlord and tenant whether or not it is notarized, permit-signed, or carries those contact details.

For this section, “single-family residence” means a structure of not more than four units, excluding a manufactured home (NRS 118A.200(10)). A lease signed by a permit-holding manager does not carry the warning — and, more importantly, it is the document that rebuts the presumption in the first place. See unlawful occupancy and squatters for why that matters.

Clauses That Are Void Even Though the Tenant Signed Them

NRS 118A.220(1) lists provisions a rental agreement may not contain. Where one appears and the landlord knowingly used the agreement, the tenant may recover actual damages caused by its inclusion (NRS 118A.220(2)). A signature does not cure any of these:

• A waiver of the tenant’s rights or remedies under NRS chapter 118A.
• Authorisation for anyone to confess judgment on a claim arising from the agreement.
• An agreement to pay the landlord’s attorney’s fees — though a provision awarding fees to the prevailing party is permitted.
• An agreement exculpating or indemnifying the landlord from liability for their own acts or omissions, or those of their agents.
• An agreement by the tenant to accept a shorter termination notice than the landlord is required to give.

If There Is No Written Agreement

The absence of a written agreement raises disputable presumptions against the landlord (NRS 118A.200(5)): that there are no restrictions on children or pets, that maintenance and waste removal are provided without charge, that no late or dishonored-check charges are payable, and that the premises will be returned in the same condition as at the start of the tenancy other than normal wear.

That is a costly set of defaults to argue against, and it is the plainest argument for getting the lease right rather than relying on an understanding.

Unconscionability

Separately, a court may refuse to enforce a rental agreement, or any provision of one, that it finds was unconscionable when it was made (NRS 118A.230), and may limit the application of such a provision to avoid an unconscionable result.

Related: the Nevada landlord-tenant law guide, security deposit rules, late fees and rent payment rules, and fair housing compliance.

Statutory references on this page were read from the official chapter text at leg.state.nv.us and verified on 24 August 2026. Nevada’s Legislature meets in odd-numbered years; the next regular session is 2027, so figures here can change after that. This is general information for Nevada rental owners and residents — it is not legal advice. For a specific situation, consult a Nevada attorney.