LANDLORD AS ROOMMATE- ROOMMATE/LODGER/BORDER

Ask A Lawyer:
From: Riv (connect2@san.rr.com, )
Area of law: (Landlord- Tenant)
Country: United States of America
State: San Diego, California

Whether a resident landlord can rent extra rooms out to persons as roommates for a lease term if all parties agree???

Or..Whether the roommateS will be considered lodgerS or boarders, when they sign a Roommate Lease Agreement, agree to status as roommate, cook and buy their own food, have use of all exterior/interior furnished premises, are not temporary overnighters and all utilities/supplies/chores and premises are shared by the roommates and the landlord as a roommate?

[OHlandlord]

CA and San Diego surely have specific definitions of these types of rentals in the laws. You would need to pull up those particular laws to see how these are defined. In general though, if you are renting rooms in your house to unrelated people, that may make it a rooming house subject to boarding laws. Rooming/boarding laws usually apply to people renting rooms in the same house that are not related, they share common areas with their LL, they are on seperate agreements renting each one a single room, and they apply to a certain number of people renting rooms in one house (the number varies by place). Roommates vary since they sign the same agreement and share a number of rooms (although they may have seperate bedrooms, it is not specified in the lease). Roommates usually rent a place seperate from the LL (not in his house). Roommates sign to be jointly and severally liable for the lease or agreement. Boarders sign seperate agreements and are not liable jointly. But these are just general categories. Please check local laws for their definitions. It is possible with only one or two people that they could fall under LL-tenant law instead of boarding houses.