Do landlords allow prospective tenants to make changes to a lease before signing it?

Generally, large landlords do not allow tenants to make modifications to a lease prior to signing.  Most use standard lease forms like REBNY or Blumberg that they are comfortable with and thus will not want to stray from the norm, as it would become difficult to keep track of changes for each tenant.

Regardless, if you feel strongly about making changes to the lease, it may not hurt to ask for specific items and provide rational reasons for why they need to be included (or removed, if applicable).  One way of doing this is by including a rider or addendum to the lease.  This will not involve any direct changes to the core lease, but will include additional terms that are agreed upon by you and the landlord. However, please keep in mind that in many situations, it may be “take it or leave it,” meaning either accept the lease as-is or don’t rent from the landlord.

Renting Directly From A Condo/Co-op Owner
If you are renting a condo or co-op unit directly from an individual owner, it may be easier to negotiate lease terms compared with a larger landlord. In these cases, since a form lease is generally used, owners may add a rider/addendum for additional items applicable to the apartment and tenant, which need to be expressly stated. At that time, if the tenant wishes to add specific terms on his/her behalf, he/she can propose to do so and negotiate with the owner.