What is a Venue Rental Agreement?
A venue rental agreement is a legally binding contract between the owner, or landlord, of a property and a potential renter. A venue rental agreement states the terms and conditions of the property being rented and how payments will be handled. The rental agreement also clarifies the dates and times of the rental and the conduct of the renters, how many people will be attending the event, as well as the cancellation policy.
Signing the venue rental agreement should only occur after the renter has been shown the property and agreed to its rules. Once both parties sign the rental agreement, the renter will usually pay a deposit to secure the rental . Then, they will be given contact information to schedule a walkthrough on the day of the event so that the renter can familiarize themselves with the property. Upon visiting the property, the renter will need to make a signature on the rental agreement stating that they understand the rules of the property and accept full responsibility for the conduct of their guests and the use of the property. They will also need to provide payment in full before the event.
Should the renter wish to cancel or reschedule the event, there is a cancellation policy for that. It is important to understand all of the conditions of the venue rental agreement before deciding to sign one, though the cancellation policy often includes a small amount of flexibility.
Key Features of Venue Rental Agreements
A venue rental agreement should explicitly spell out the terms that govern the relationship between you, the venue, and any businesses providing services at the venue. Important terms that should be included in the agreement include:
Payment Terms: You will want to know up-front how much you will be charged for use of the venue and when payment will be due. Most venues require an up-front deposit before they will consider you a customer. If you are not able to pay the deposit amount, or if you want to negotiate a more convenient manner of payment, speak with the venue manager before you sign the contract. In addition to rental fees, be aware that you may also be charged a damage deposit to cover potential damages caused during the event.
Cancellation Policy: Unfortunate circumstances arise sometimes, like storms and other acts of God, that can prevent you from using the venue, so you should look for a cancellation policy that is acceptable to both you and the venue. A mutually agreeable cancellation policy will likely include a per diem charge for each day the venue is cleaned up and returned to its normal state, or a predetermined cancellation fee.
Liability: If your event turns rowdy and someone gets hurt, who is responsible? Who is responsible if someone trips and falls on stairs carpeting that you paid to have installed to design your event? Who is responsible if you fail to pay your bill or put down your deposit in time? The terms of those liabilities are essential.
Advantages of Using PDF Format for Venue Rental Agreements
Since venue rental agreements are likely to be stored or shared electronically, it’s important to choose a format that’s universally accessible and versatile. The PDF format is widely used as a result of its official status as an open format under the ISO 32000 standard, and its support by most computer systems and software.
The stability of the PDF format means that you can expect the same look and feel across many different systems. This is particularly useful if you’re sharing draft agreements with your customer, professional advisor, or another consultant. These parties may be using different operating systems and software than yours when viewing or editing the document, but the PDF format will allow for a consistent experience. Unfortunately, this is not the case for the DOCX file format. While many computers and smartphones allow for the opening of DOCX files without the Microsoft Office software, other types of devices or software may not be able to do so. That means there’s a possibility that a consultant or customer may encounter problems opening an agreement if it’s in DOCX format.
In addition to the increased compatibility of PDF files, the format also provides additional security features when emailing or sharing your venue rental agreement. For example, you can set the permissions of the file to limit the ability of the recipient to make changes or print the document. Alternatively, you can choose to password-protect the file, ensuring that only the intended recipient can view and edit it. Finally, you can include security settings like controlling the availability of the document, or restricting printing.
PDFs are easily shared via email and are appropriate for sending to your customers to review and approve your proposed agreement. In fact, you can actually share your agreement in an "invitation to comment" format, allowing you both to invite comment, keep notes, or set reminders. When you’ve both reviewed the agreement, you can either finalize it in a print-enabled PDF or a digital format like DocuSign or Clickwrap.
How to Personalize a Venue Rental Agreement PDF
A venue rental agreement PDF may contain a standard set of clauses and sections that don’t necessarily reflect the basic structure of an agreement for the rental of a specific venue. These documents can be altered for any number of reasons, to incorporate new legal requirements or to be better personalized to suit the needs of a rental event or venue owner.
Basically, you can alter any clause or section to accommodate anything you want, provided of course that you are following local laws and regulations. When you make changes, you need to modify the rest of the content within the document accordingly for a complete and coherent agreement. Follow these simple steps to customize a PDF agreement:
- Consider your personal situation and how any of the sections in the venue rental agreement PDF are affected by this situation, as well as any new clauses that need to be added to the document .
- Open the PDF in a document reader of your choice (Adobe Reader, Foxit Acrobat) or PDF editing tool (Adobe Acrobat, DocFly).
- Navigate to the pages of the PDF that need to be modified and, using your editing tool, change the section heading requirements for that section as well as any text that will need to be updated.
- Save the changes and make sure to keep a backup copy of the original document before you make any more alterations or edits.
- Repeat these steps as needed until you are done with the required modifications.
- Save and export the file in whichever format is most appropriate, whether you plan to send the document to your clients electronically or make hard copies for use during the rental of the venue.
Common Pitfalls in Venue Rental Agreements
The terms of the agreement are much more important than many people understand. For instance, many venues will often times insert a "walk-throughs" clause in their rental agreements. A walk-through is simply when the venue seller or renter comes back to inspect the facility and see if the venue is up to their standards. Oftentimes if they are not, they may try to make you pay for repairs or even charge forfeitures. Therefore it is suggested to take photos, and make notes about the entire building that can be used later on in court. It is also common for venues to include a "time is of the essence" clause into the agreement which is also overlooked by many venue goers. Whether the time it takes to set up for an event, or to dismantle an event, it is important to go over these timelines as the payment schedule is often tied to these deadlines.
Where to Obtain Templates for Venue Rental Agreements in PDF
A variety of industry websites and organizations offer downloadable venue rental agreement PDFs for this purpose. Websites of local professional event planner associations may not only feature such downloadable PDFs but also detailed information, including member contact details, links to useful vendor websites, and more. A particular advantage of using these organizations is that their suggestions may be specific to the event or location in which you are interested, helping you to create an appropriate rental agreement for your needs.
Another resource is websites of companies and organizations that deal with a particular kind of event , such as conferences or weddings. These websites often feature extensive information about potential venues, including PDF templates for rental agreements. In the case of wedding venues, for example, companies, websites, or organizations that specialize in wedding planning may offer a number of options to get started on your rental agreement.
Several commercial websites also feature venue rental agreement paragraphs. These paragraphs, which can be combined with the above resources and tailored to fit your needs, may help ensure that your event will be a success.