Share Accomodation

The following is for information only and should not be taken as law.
Please refer to the appropriate jurisdiction in your area.

Sharing a rental unit with one or two others may be the only way you can afford rental accommodation. It can work to your benifit however, it very often doesn't. Many rental owners do not like to rent to sharing tenants. Most have had too many bad experiences. If you decide to share, it's very important to choose who you live with carefully and to check that each tenant understands their rights and responsibilities. The Residential Tenancies Act does not cover the rights and responsibilities between roommates.

The most common reasons for conflict among roommates include boy/girlfriends, portion of rent, rent payment, cleanliness, boundaries, noise, study time, alcohol and/or drug use, visitors and guests.

Remember:

• All of the tenants living in the rental unit are under one tenancy agreement with the landlord when they moved in. All cotenants are bound by the terms of the lease and the terms of the Residential Tenancy Act.
• Each tenant is liable for all the rent.
• All cotenants have exactly the same rights and responsibilities.
• If one tenant is not paying the rent or is causing other problems, the other tenant could end up having to pay his/her share, or any other costs.
• The landlord may be entitled to keep your deposit once the tenancy is over if there is any rent owing or any damage has been done to the property by either tenant.
• If one joint tenant ends the tenancy, all tenants will have to leave unless those that want to stay can negotiate a new agreement with the landlord.
• The landlord cannot evict one joint tenant without evicting all of you. However, he may offer a new tenancy once the original one has ended.
• If you have disagreements, the joint tenants are responsible for sorting them out between yourselves.
• If one joint tenants moves out, the landlord has the right to end the tenancy.
• Even if one joint tenants moves out, he/she is still bound by the rules set out in the agreement, for example, the obligation to pay rent. To deal with this issue the tenant who is leaving can ask to be taken off the tenancy agreement by his/her roommates and the landlord. This new agreement should be in writing and signed by everyone to avoid later difficulties.
• If one tenant moves out without making a new agreement, the landlord will ask the other tenants to pay all the rent, including the share of the person who has left. The landlord is able to do this because each tenant is liable for all the rent. It would be up to the remaining tenants to recover the rent from the tenant who has left.
• Where a tenant allows a person (occupant) who is not a tenant to move into the premises and share the rent, the occupant's rights and obligations are very limited.
• ‘Guests’ that stay longer than a period of time set out in the tenancy agreement may be deemed either part of the tenancy, in which they would be required to be included legally, or a trespasser in which the landlord has the right to have them removed or end the tenancy agreement.
• Before a new tenant moves in, he/she should, legally must, obtain the landlord's permission.
• The landlord has the right to refuse any change in tenancy.
• The tenant who let you stay can ask you to leave whenever he/she wishes.
• Set house rules. Just going with the flow seldom works. Consider discussing the issues with your future roommate(s) and put it in writing. Who pays for what, how much? Communal fund for household items.

It has been my experience with renting to shared tenancy:

• most often the tenancy lasts less than 1 year.
• tend to party more frequently and louder with unruly guests.
• cause far more damage to the rental unit than average.
• often late with the rent.
• leave without notice.
• different tenants appear without notice.

Would I rent to shared tenancy ever again? NO!!