<p>^ Yes, too much headache. I don’t like the fact that one of boys is the owner’s son. The owner should sublet a room and common area to each individual.</p>
<p>I would prefer 1 or 2 bedroom apartment and share with at most 1 kid.</p>
<p>Thanks all. I’ll have the lease to see today (no, he hasn’t signed it yet).</p>
<p>I think it is common practice for landlords who rent to college students to require each tenant student to have a parent co-sign. (I know someone who owns rental property and rents to students, and she always requires all of the parents to co-sign, or else won’t rent to the students.) If you don’t co-sign now, your S will probably not have a place to live, and the other 3 roommates will have to scramble to find another person to share the rent. </p>
<p>Yes, you would be taking on some risk in co-signing, but there is also a big negative impact if you won’t co-sign. It really depends on your personal financial situation of if you can handle the risk.</p>
<p>Everyone has covered the joint and several nicely, I will add that I live in a college town and this town has recently moved to major fines for repeated (more than 2 police calls per year I believe) parties/noise ($3k)…landlords here can use that violation as terms to pass on to parents AND kick out kids and keep deposits.</p>
<p>It’s just strange that the LL is one of the student’s parents. Otherwise it would be fairly straight forward.</p>
<p>I would not co-sign. I’d suggest my child offer a large deposit first in leiu of a co-signer, or, if he already has credit, on the strength of his credit. </p>
<p>I’m not co-signing for everyone and don’t even ever want to co-sign at all. EACH party is held “jointly and severally liable” for all damages and unpaid rent on on a Lease. (I’m a landlord). If one or more parties bail, you hold the bag for all.</p>
<p>Erin’s Dad, it is not really strange. Many landlords purchase a home near their kid’s university and let the student act as the landlord for the period of time while he is at university. Then they sell the house.</p>
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<p>The use of nuisance laws by max quota of police calls is being challenged by Civil Liberties and rights groups not only on constitutional grounds, but also because of potential unintended consequences/impacts on marginalized groups such as domestic violence victims as seen here:</p>
<p>[Evicted</a> For Calling 911: ‘Nuisance Property’ Laws Hard On Domestic Violence Victims](<a href=“HuffPost - Breaking News, U.S. and World News | HuffPost”>Evicted For Calling 911: 'Nuisance Property' Laws Hard On Domestic Violence Victims | HuffPost Latest News)</p>
<p>I would also suggest really reading the contract well before signing the lease contract, if you are going to. Most people think about the issues of: What if one of the roommates moves out? or "What if there are some damages like a hole punched in the wall? But think of bigger issues, such as: What if the kids cause a fire and the house burns down? Will you be liable for loss of use during the time it takes for the homeowner’s insurance policy to pay to rebuild? Will the h/o’s insurance company come after you for repayment if your kid was at fault for the fire? If somebody is severely injured on the property, if you sign the lease, can somebody come after you due to any liability your child may have? Will your son’s rental insurance cover any of this? Will your homeowner’s insurance? Do you have Umbrella insurance? Will your student be covered under this insurance? Will your umbrella insurer continue to cover you if you co-sign the lease? We always assume the best, but you need to plan for the worst.</p>
<p>OP, I haven’t read the whole thread but what you wrote in your first post is very common. We go into this blind, most of us. But it is how it’s done. I would never co-sign for a lifestyle which our family couldn’t afford (ie nice apartment in NYC or Laguna Beach). In a college town, for the usual college housing, this is how it’s done. I never met the other parents (who also had to co-sign) when my D shared an apartment with their D’s ~ so they were also going in blind by putting their trust in me ~ that we would pay our daughter’s share responsibly. As for landlord issues, usually former tenants are the only ones to ask. Maybe different in your case considering who the owners are ~ I’d consider yourself luckier than most. We are now entering year 2 of co-signing (different roommates, different house, D now in grad school) and will do a year 3 as well with a whole new scenario. I would not do this if she were out in the working world. Unfortunately around college campuses this is VERY common.</p>
<p>I own a home near a local college that is currently rented to 4 students and has been for years. Though in California, I thought you’d appreciate the other side’s perspective.</p>
<p>I work through a property manager with lots of experience in the area. All my tenants must either qualify for the whole house independently or, have a co-signer. The lease is structured such that each occupant is severally responsible for rent, damage, etc. If 3 move out in the middle of the night, the 4th is on the hook. I have turned down many applicants who refused to agree to these terms.</p>
<p>It is not uncommon to loose an occupant or two each year. When there’s partial turnover, i require the new occupant to qualify or they aren’t allowed to move in. The house is in decent shape, convenient to campus and a good value. I love it when my current tenants recruit my future occupants and there’s no vacancy. </p>
<p>Read the lease and if there’s anything unusual in it, call a local (to the school) property manager and ask about the term to see if it’s standard in the area. If it is, you are going to have a tough time finding housing without it.</p>
<p>Don’t do it.</p>
<p>Check the language to see who bears the cost and what happens if repairs/maintenance are needed (i.e., broken water heater) vs. charges for damages (19 yo boys being stupid). My nephew’s LL tried charging him and his roommates for normal maintenance/repairs that were made to keep the house habitable (water leak behind a wall, 20 yo dead refrigerator) and that the guys living in the house could not have caused.</p>
<p>College Landlord here…</p>
<p>It sounds like you are being asked to sign a lease which contains a ‘wholly and severally liable’ lease…</p>
<p>Yes this means that any and all damages are the responsibility of each individual tenant. What this means in the real world is that in the case of damages, the land lord will try to collect damages from each individual…regardless of who caused the damage. This is SOP for most lease agreements.</p>
<p>That said, some privately owned college housing (property that is in the prime vicinity of a campus but not legally connected to campus housing) is offered on a room/bed/common area lease liability basis. In these cases, a tenant is responsible for their room and 1/2 of the common area.</p>
<p>But…bottom line…if you co-sign a wholly and severally liable lease you as the co-signer can legally be held responsible for damages caused not only by your kiddle, but by anyone one else living in the property… FWIW…we have won all the small claims court cases against tenants and regretfully, the person who we ‘go after’ is the one most fiscally available…(attachable wages, assets etc.)</p>
<p>We have also been on the other side of this coin. D and her roomie each had a pet rabbit. D was fastidious in its care and in keeping the place clean, sanitary and damage free. Her roomie regretfully was not. We informed D that if she wished to keep a pet the security deposit would be on her dime. At the end of the lease D and roomie were assessed damages…damages which were completely due to her roomies negligence…but non the less D was out a large part of her deposit.</p>
<p>Here is my elephant in the room question. Why weren’t these lease issues covered when the guys agreed to share the house with the friend who owned it? Why? Why is this now being addressed a week or two before classes are to begin, when the guys have little opportunity to find other housing?</p>
<p>When was the original agreement made, and why wasn’t a lease executed at THAT time?</p>
<p>excellent query, thumper.
I can think of 2 possibilities:
Maybe the LL just now sprung it on the boys, either deliberately or as an afterthought;
Or
maybe the student has known but has withhold info until it is almost too late to refuse.</p>
<p>I guess this is the first time LL. Experienced LLs have clear policies adhering to state renting laws before applications are received. I wonder this LL has the walkthrough list to itemize the condition of each item in the house.</p>
<p>walkthru list important.
Plus, In some state(s), a LL cannot withhold sec dep of an exiting tenant unless he provided a damage walk-thru sheet at the start of tenancy!</p>
<p>Well…tell your kid to take LOTS of pictures of the existing condition, and email them to his buddy the landlord…with a date stamp on them. You don’t want to be charged for conditions that existed when your kid moved in.</p>
<p>It sounds like this student/parent landlord combo did NOT have their act together when the offer of rental was extended to three friends. To be honest, if I could find other lodging, I would.</p>
<p>I’m with thumper: why is this only an issue NOW? </p>
<p>My gut says that the kid has nothing to do with it: it’s hard to imagine that a landlord would have required a co-signor from the beginning and not enforced it until this late date. More likely, someone talked to the landlord parents, gave them a few horror stories, and now the parents don’t want uncompenstated damage to their house if their kid’s roommates mess it up. So they are trying to retroactively get a parental co-signor on to ensure that the bills will be paid.</p>
<p>In most states, if such a requirement is not part of the original lease, then tough cookies, landlord. </p>
<p>Talk to a lawyer; if the co-signor requirement is not valid, then have the lawyer call up the landlord-parents, point out that they cannot retroactively amend the lease to require this, and make a peace offering (e.g. to double the damage deposit). Well, make the peace offering if it’s important to keep the peace between your family and this family.</p>