Obligation Relative to Other Tenants

Most students who rent off-campus have roommates. It is important to understand what the lease says about how roommates may be assigned, what obligations each renter is undertaking, and what happens if one of the roommates disappears.

Joint and several lease

If the lease is “joint and several,” the landlord may sue any or all tenants to recover unpaid rent or damages. This means that if you are one of four tenants in a joint and several lease, and one roommate stops paying their share of the rent, the landlord may require all the tenants to pay the rent (that is the joint part) or any one tenant to pay it (that is the several part). That means that the landlord could sue you for the unpaid rent of another tenant. These situations come up with surprising frequency, so be sure you understand the potential cost of a joint and several lease before signing.

Individual rent responsibility

If the lease has individual rent responsibility, you are responsible for only your rent. All tenants are still jointly and severally liable for other obligations like utilities, damages, or cleaning charges.

Individual lease

An individual lease lists you as the only tenant even if other tenants will share the unit. You are responsible for only your rent, but many individual leases specify that you are jointly and severally liable for other obligations, like utilities or damages, so there is often little practical difference between a lease with individual rent responsibility and an individual lease.

Each type of lease involves different benefits and responsibilities. For example, in an individual lease or lease with individual rent responsibility, if one tenant’s space in a unit becomes available, your landlord may assign a new tenant to that space without the remaining tenants’ approval.