A lease is a contract outlining the terms under which one party agrees to rent an asset?in this case, property?owned by another party. It guarantees the lessee, also known as the tenant, use of the property and guarantees the lessor (the property owner or landlord) regular payments for a specified period in exchange.
In Lease vs. Rent, a lease is when you borrow something for a long time (over 11 months), such as property or a car. However, renting means you pay to use something for a shorter period,less than 11 months, like a camera, camping gear, etc.
While ?lessee? and ?tenant? might be used interchangeably in everyday language, they carry subtle distinctions in the legal and financial realms. A lessee is someone who enters into a formal lease agreement, while a tenant refers to someone occupying a property, regardless of the presence of a lease.
You are correct that "rent" normally refers to the payment and "rental" to the space that is rented. I need to find a new rental / rental unit / apartment to rent / place to rent / place to live. The (monthly) rent for the room is $300.
Rental is the object that you are renting. Rent is a verb (to rent) or a noun (the money you pay to rent something). Rental is a noun that refers to the thing that you rent (apartment, house, car, movie, and so on).