Discover how AI is being used to review lease agreements. Get steps on how to use artificial intelligence to summarize your documents and then edit and sign them with Xodo Sign.
Can AI review a lease agreement? Absolutely. And it's revolutionizing how professionals handle these complex documents.
What once meant hours of tedious page-turning and hunting for critical clauses can now be accomplished in minutes with intelligent automation.
Real estate professionals, property managers, and business owners are already using these capabilities to catch what matters most without the eye strain and oversight risk of manual review.
In this guide, we're taking a close look at:
- Adopting AI to review lease agreements
- How AI identifies key lease clauses
- How to summarize a lease agreement with AI (Xodo Sign)
- How to edit and e-sign lease agreements with Xodo Sign
- Ways to use AI for lease reviews
- Frequently asked questions
AI handles the heavy lifting of document analysis, so you can focus on the strategic decisions that need to be made.
AI adoption in reviewing lease agreements
Lease analysis can be time-consuming, especially if you manage several properties or coordinate multiple commercial spaces. Traditional methods require reading through each page, highlighting important clauses, and verifying compliance with local regulations.
AI offers a practical solution by processing large volumes of text in seconds. Modern AI tools can extract essential clauses, highlight unusual terms, and produce summaries that give you a straightforward overview. They handle repetitive tasks, so you can focus on making strategic decisions.
At the same time, AI helps you stay current with the latest contract norms. If you rely on stale boilerplate clauses, you could miss new state rules or updated guidelines from your industry.
Artificial Intelligence tools and services that are regularly updated can flag older language, suggest changes, and integrate relevant references, which is especially helpful for real estate professionals or property teams that manage multiple leases each quarter.
How AI identifies key lease clauses
AI systems use natural language processing (NLP) to interpret the text of your lease agreement. They don’t just scan for keywords. They interpret context, compare phrases against known legal patterns, standard clauses, and typical terms.
When reviewing a lease, AI tools can:
- Highlight critical dates, such as the start of a new rent period.
- Identify payment terms, late fees, and security deposit rules.
- Pinpoint auto-renewal clauses, rent increases, and renegotiation windows.
- Flag possible legal issues, such as contradictory language.
- Summarize complicated sections, like indemnification or subletting.
This immediate visibility on the key terms in your lease documents can help you make informed decisions, identify potential risks, and pinpoint any hidden financial obligations, all before signing.
Keep in mind that AI is most accurate with well-formatted PDFs or text files. Handwritten or low-resolution scans can pose challenges.
How to summarize a lease agreement with AI
Summarizing a lease with AI tools like Xodo Sign's AI Summarizer is simple. Here’s how:
1. Sign up or Log in to Xodo Sign
- Sign up for Xodo Sign Professional if you don't have an account already. If you do, log into your account.
- In the dashboard, go to Quick Actions > File Editor.
- Click on Select File(s).
- Browse for and upload your PDF into Xodo Sign's Advanced Editor.
With Xodo Sign, you get complete security. The content you upload and summarize isn't stored or shared.
2. Run the Xodo AI summary process
- Click on the Summarizer icon in the right-hand sidebar to expand the tool.
- Click on Generate Summary.
- Let Xodo AI analyze the content
Combined with advanced redaction tools, Xodo Sign's AI summarization tool can identify sensitive information, contractual terms, or other material that may require review for permanent redaction.
3. Review and finalize
- Once the lease analysis is done, read through the summary.
- Confirm any details and decide if any edits or mark ups are needed.
For a deeper look at AI-based contract summarization, you can check out our guide on summarizing a contract with AI.
At this point, you may decide that your summarized lease may need some editing before it's completely ready for signatures.
How to edit and e-sign lease agreements with Xodo Sign
Xodo Sign is an all-in-one platform that pairs the AI review process with editing and e-signing. Once you've summarized your agreement, you can easily make edits to the document.
Here’s how:
1. Edit your lease using Xodo Sign's editing tools
- With your PDF still open in the Advanced Editor, choose from any of the editing tools available: Annotate (highlight, underline, strikethrough), Insert (shapes, files, stamps), Redact or Edit text, and modify pages, just to name a few.
- Make your edits to the document.
You can also use the Quick Send option to instantly append a signing page to the end of the document if no form fields are needed.
2. Prepare your lease for signatures
- Click on Prepare for Signature.
- Select your signers, enter their email addresses, and set signer their roles.
- Draft your email message to your signers.
- Set the signing order if needed.
3. Add form fields for signatures, initials, or dates
- Click on Prepare for Signature.
- Place the necessary form fields for each signer on the document by clicking and dragging them onto the page.
4. Send your agreement lease for e-signing
- Click on Send.
- Monitor your document's progress. Xodo Sign includes audit trails so you can see who has received, viewed, or signed a document.
Every signature is legally valid, and the platform supports 256-bit encryption with compliance certifications to protect data.
Keep in mind that if the AI summary reveals complex legal issues, it’s wise to consult an attorney. AI speeds up your initial review, but final determinations on legally binding language often need human feedback.
Ways to use AI for lease review
One major advantage of using AI is adaptability. Whether you’re a single landlord or a large corporate tenant, AI can scale to your needs. Below are a few popular approaches:
- Automated clause extraction
If you want a quick read on renewal options, rent hikes, or security deposit procedures, AI can parse each clause and compile them into a single summary without scanning each page or cross-referencing multiple lines. - Risk analysis
Lease agreements sometimes carry hidden liabilities. An AI system can compare your lease terms to industry standards (or an internal policy list) and highlight possible areas of concern. - Financial calculations
If your lease outlines percentage increases, taxes, or maintenance fees in multiple paragraphs, an AI tool can collect the numeric details to tease out any financial implications to be aware of, preventing any misinterpretation. - Compliance with local laws
AI can help determine whether specific local laws might apply to your lease. While AI can’t replace a licensed attorney, it can help highlight city regulations or disclaimers to confirm with your legal team.
For more ways to combine AI with complex legal documents, take a look at review a contract with AI.
Tools like Xodo Sign go further by letting you summarize a PDF lease, edit it, and then sign it, all in one place.
Frequently asked questions
Can AI spot errors in a lease even if it has unusual phrasing?
Yes. Advanced AI systems typically look for context and semantics, not just fixed words. They can often identify unusual phrasing by matching it to standard legal patterns or catching inconsistencies. However, always verify any flagged items.
Does AI handle every state’s legal rules?
Not every AI platform includes local and geographic specifics. However, many AI tools do reference large legal databases to identify potential issues in multiple jurisdictions. If your lease agreement must conform to unique local statutes, consult an attorney.
Do I still need a lawyer after using AI?
Yes. AI doesn’t offer official legal advice or interpret your state’s laws in a complete way. It helps you find key data points faster. Once that happens, ask a legal professional any final questions, especially for high-stakes commercial contracts.
How does Xodo Sign protect my contract data?
Xodo Sign uses measures like 256-bit encryption, SOC 2 compliance, and built-in audit trails. This means any document you upload is shielded from unauthorized access. You also have control over who can view or edit the file.
Can I sign immediately after I finish the AI review?
Absolutely. With Xodo Sign, you can add your own signed and completed signature field, add date and initial fields if needed, and then send it to others. You can keep everything in one place, eliminating the need for a separate signing tool.
What if I have a complicated commercial lease?
Always confirm major edits or changes with legal counsel, especially for more complicated or high-value leases. AI can still locate main points, but the potential for overlap with unique legal requirements is higher. Commercial leases typically contain more clauses, specialized language, and specific local rules.
If you don’t see your own questions on AI answered above, consider contacting a legal professional or exploring additional resources on the Xodo Sign website.
Next steps with AI-based lease reviews
Using AI to review a lease agreement is becoming standard practice. It's easy to see why. Uploading a contract, running a quick analysis, and finalizing terms can happen in one streamlined process.
Whether you’re dealing with short residential leases or more complex commercial contracts, using AI with tools like Xodo Sign can speed up the entire review and signing process. You get real-time analysis, a central spot to revise your agreement, and a fast way to secure signatures from all parties.
If you don't have an account yet, sign up for Xodo Sign and start streamlining your workflows.
Already have a Xodo Sign account? Explore Xodo AI Summarizer see how quickly you can handle lease agreements from start to finish.