Lessor

Example

Maria owns a duplex and signs a 12-month lease with James for the upstairs unit at $1,450 a month, starting October 1, 2026. Maria is the lessor and James is the lessee. If Maria hires a management company to sign leases and collect rent for her, the lease may name the company as her agent, but Maria is still the lessor: the ownership, the rent and the duties a landlord owes are hers. The word is sometimes misspelled “lesser,” which is a different word entirely.

In a lease it looks like…

This Lease is made on October 1, 2026 between Maria Lopez (“Lessor”) and James Carter (“Lessee”). Lessor leases to Lessee the premises at 412 Elm Street, Unit B, for a term of twelve months.

Good to know

To keep the two apart, remember that the -or grants and the -ee receives, as with employer and employee. The same pair of words is used for cars and equipment, where the lessor is usually the leasing company and the lessee is the driver or business paying for the use.