A lease is a contract giving the possession of real estate to one party, but keeping the ownership in the original owner. It is really a contract whereby one party becomes the tenant and the other the landlord. Thus, A wishes a certain lot of ground for a factory site, but does not wish to buy it. So he goes to the owner, B, and they agree that for a rent of $5,000 a year A shall have the use of the land for ten years - this contract is called a lease; the owner is called the landlord or "lessor," while the person holding the land is the tenant or "lessee." The consideration in such a contract is known as rent, and the valuable right to use the property is called the "leasehold." No particular form is required to create a lease, which may be oral or written. The agreement may be either expressly stated or implied from the conduct of the parties. The English Statute of Frauds applies generally to the creation of all leases for a longer time than three years, requiring that they be in writing, while in the United States different periods are prescribed, by statute in the various States, beyond which an oral lease is unenforceable. A seal is not essential to the validity of a written lease, even if the lease is required to be in writing. Unless it is specifically stated otherwise, either the landlord or tenant may assign his interest in the lease without the consent of the other. The tenant may sublet to a new tenant; thus, A rents a farm from B, and rents it to C for a period of years less than the lease runs. A's lease is for ten years. If he assigns the lease to C, the latter gets the farm for the entire period (or unexpired part). A would still be liable for the rent and any other agreements he may have made with the landlord. If he had rented the farm for seven years to C (less than the full term, or less than the unexpired portion) he would be subletting his lease. A lease may be terminated by: (1) Mutual agreement; (2) some other act of both parties; (3) default or breach of either party; (4) its terms (such as the expiration of the term or the occurrence of a stipulated event); (5) destruction of the subject-matter; (6) operation of law; (7) proof that the lease was induced by mistake, fraud or duress (it is not void, but only voidable in such a case); (8) the eviction of either party by a superior title (thus, if A rented property to B that belonged to C, the lease would be terminated when C proved his title).