How do you handle security deposits on lease renewals?

[Bearded Man]

My tenants renewed their lease for another year. I am unsure of what to put down for security and pet deposits in the new lease. Do I put down the money I received from them a year ago, or just leave it blank? Same with pet deposit, first and last months rent, etc.

They paid first and last months rent, a security deposit, and a pet deposit when they moved in. Obviously I don't collect any of these now, but how do I handle it on the new lease? Mark it as paid, leave it blank, or mark it as paid with a note that it was paid last lease and is carrying over?

[arebelspy]

Write something like "carried forward $XX from previous lease".

Why are you doing a whole new lease?

For my renewals I do a one page lease addendum (lease addendum #1, or 2, or whatever) that says the address at the top, tenant and landlord names, then has some blank lines.

Typically it has two sentences: "Lease to be extended through x/x/xxx.  All other terms and conditions to remain the same."  Sometimes it'll have another line in between: "Rent to be $X" (if the rent went up), or any other terms you want added (once I switched it to me paying the water instead of them and increased the rent to compensate for that).

Both sign and date at the bottom, done.  Most of my lease renewals are those two sentences though.

[Ego]

What arebelspy said above.

Here is an example: PDF
http://www.adaboston.org/Lease%20Extension%20Agreement.pdf

[Bearded Man]

Thanks gents, exactly what I was looking for.