Lease responsibilities (for sale, leasing, good credit)

[superbusymomof3]

I am fairly new to renting having previously owned 2 homes.

We are moving the LA Westside area and would like to rent a home. Most of the homes we see advertised are for 1 year minimum lease (although someone of them have dropped the rents and seem to be having trouble renting)

Ideally we would like a shorter (6 month or 9 month lease) that then goes to month to month with 30 day notice. There seems to be a glut of houses for sale and for rent and in the event of unforseen circumstances such as company bankruptcy, job loss etc we don't want to get stuck supporting a landlord in this lousy market.

The house we are currently vacating in another state was a one year lease poorly worded saying that either party could terminate with 30 days notice. He has advertised the house for $200 more when rents have dropped and is trying to say we are responsible. yeah right.

How does one protect themselves when leasing.

We are a responsible family with good credit, pay our rent on time and look after the house. If we damage something, we will fix it or get it repaired.

Also, are tenants responsible for cleaning carpets when they move out? (ie just general carpet cleaning, not overly damaged ones with lots of spills)