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Renting a room with no agreement
Delzhand
Registered User, Transition Team regular
Registered User, Transition Team regular
So I'm going to be renting a room starting this week. I've been to the house, and I've met the owner. It's a flat amount per month, no deposit, all utilities paid for. But it's really informal. I told him I'd at least want some kind of document with both our signatures on it, just to protect myself. But I'm not sure what to put on it. Like some kind of agreement to not go through my things, agreement not to change the locks on me, that sort of thing? What else should I include?
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It can be:
I Delzhand, agree to rent 1 room at (address) in exchange for x dollars in accordance with all rental laws applicable to the state of (your state). Rental is on a month to month basis, this agreement may be terminated by either side with at least 30 days written notice. Any changes in rental rate must be done in accordance with (your state)'s laws and must be done with at least 30 days written notice. x utilities are covered under this agreement by the tenant. Sign it with a witness.
It's enforceable, if you want to use a boiler plate template, you can.
we also talk about other random shit and clown upon each other
Don’t ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever rent to or rent from anyone without a notarized, legally-binding document. Even though laws tend to favor the tenant in most (all?) states (and you would be the tenant in this situation) a written agreement can only protect you unless you sign something very unfavorable to you or your situation.
Sure, writing or signing a ridiculous and thus unenforceable contract will not do you any good, but there are plenty of boilerplate agreements that you can find that are good. Also, IANAL, but I don’t think an unenforceable contract precludes your default rights in your city/state.
Even with a legally enforceable, favorable contract I highly recommend living alone, far from roommates or, if it can be avoided, the majority of human society.*
*A joke (mostly)
do not do this
contracts are there to provide an even field for tenant and landlord and you have zero protection without it
but they're listening to every word I say
Oh poo.
I've been renting a room like this with only a verbal agreement for almost 4 years now. The owner and I get along wonderfully but now I wonder if I need to do something similar.
It's the new year! Time to make resolutions and also write down legally binding agreements!
I will not turn this thread about me but I could basically be the poster boy for why you need an agreement for this kind of relationship. My situation is a completely horrific distaster and I may have put myself into a situation where I have to decide whether or not to eat an eviction (which is terrible) or live with some person I detest for the rest of my life, or at least until HE decides he wants to leave (which is also terrible).
Relationships of this sort always end, amicably or otherwise. It’s always good to have something legally binding that defines the terms of that relationship and its dissolution. It protects both parties.
Before my current apartment, my family and eventually I was living downstairs in a two family house. We were on a month-to-month lease for literally two decades. I assumed that lease toward the end. Without getting into specifics, and despite a 20+ year relationship with the owner family, they decided they wanted to sell, they tried to give me less than 30 days notice to vacate (which was illegal and I informed them so), and threatened eviction if I didn’t get out within the 25 days they tried to give me.
20+ years.
That should have taught me not to take relationships for granted. It didn’t I guess. But don’t.