Im thinking about renting out the bedroom and just crashing in the living room and I pay the full rent+bills but they just reimburse me their part. Trying to avoid a situation where thats income because it really isnt, its more reimbursing their share, like moving in a partner or something and splitting.
The use either the terms
assign (transfer the right to occupy the rental unit to the assignee so they become the new tenant to the landlord)
and
sublet (original tenant moves out but can return and it doesnt alter tenant/landlord relationship)
I won’t be moving out (“subletting”), nor will I be taking my name off the lease (“assigning”, I’m simply thinking of renting the bedroom to reimburse their half of the rent and everything else stays the same, I still take care of bills/utilities
All rent would just be going straight to the account with the landlord, i never retain or enjoy it (practically speaking), I would just set their last month’s aside for when the last month arrives and apply it to the account then
I have to let them know of my plans and get their go ahead apparently but how do I frame it when neither those terms really captures what I’ve laid out?
Edit- there’s a section on
Guests
Landlord cant prevent having a roommate as long as local bi-laws on occupancy standards are respected
Honestly, you should really discuss this with a lawyer if you want a real answer. If you can get the attention of a tenant-landlord lawyer, they will probably give you a straightforward answer over email and charge you nothing for it. But these sorts of things can vary a lot from place to place, and a local lawyer would know best.
Personally, I would be absolutely shocked if this were strictly legal for multiple reasons… But again, laws vary by region.
Check the rules about shared accommodation. Ours had rental restrictions with a clause that family can live together, but can’t add a roommate into the dwelling as that becomes an additional renter.
Some places have a rule in place that additional bodies in the rental can allow landlord to raise rent per each person.
sublet (
original tenant moves out but can return andit doesnt alter tenant/landlord relationship)FTFY. There is no requirement that the principal tenant actually leave the premises. “Subletting” is where the owner of a property leases to a principal tenant, and that tenant leases to additional tenants. The owner of the property has no agreements in place with those additional tenants. You are the tenant of the owner; the “college student” is your tenant. You are subletting (part of) your rented space to another.
That was the lease’s framing of the options before i flipped to the section on Guests (Roommates)
Is that meaningfully distinct from the Guest/Roommate part I added at the end? I obviously prefer to treat it in that light so i dont need to get landlord involved at all
Guests
Landlord cant prevent having a roommate as long as local bi-laws on occupancy standards are respected
The only thing like that i can think of is window/fire exit thing which they have in the bedroom and i have in the living room
Yes, it is indeed distinct. “Roommate” does not imply any sort of landlord/tenant relationship. It’s just someone you allow to live with you. This is the route I would choose, unless they demanded tenant status.
The downside is that if they refuse to pay rent at some point in the future, it’s tough to take them to court over it since you don’t have a formal rental agreement.
