A roommate agreement is a written deal between people who share a rental: who pays what share of the rent and bills, how the deposit is split, who gets which bedroom, and what happens when someone wants to leave. The landlord isn’t a party to it. Roommates who all signed the same lease use it most, because the lease tells the landlord how to collect but says nothing about how the roommates settle up among themselves.
Why sign a roommate agreement if you already have a lease?
Because the lease protects the landlord, not you. When roommates sign one lease together, they’re usually jointly and severally liable. The Iowa People’s Law Library says that means each of you is fully responsible to the landlord for things like the full rent and any damage. The City of Davis rental guide says the same thing in different words: you’re bound to the lease regardless of personal changes during its term.
So if one of three roommates on a $2,700 lease stops paying their $900, the landlord can ask the other two for the full amount. The lease doesn’t care who promised what to whom at the kitchen table. A roommate agreement is where those promises get written down, which gives the paying roommates something concrete if they later have to ask for the money back, including in small claims court.
The Davis guide also spells out the limit: the landlord isn’t bound by your roommate agreement and has no power to enforce it. It works between you, and only between you.
Is this the right document, or do you need a different one?
It depends on who is in charge of the place. Use this roommate agreement when everyone shares the home as equals, typically all named on the lease, or all paying the landlord directly.
If one person owns the home or holds the lease alone and is charging someone else rent for a bedroom, that’s a landlord relationship, and the room rental agreement fits better. If you’re handing your whole place or your spot on the lease to someone else for a while, use a sublease agreement, and check whether your lease requires the landlord’s consent first.
One more wrinkle for renters in New York: the state attorney general’s guide says it’s unlawful for a landlord to limit occupancy to only the named tenant and immediate family, and that a tenant may generally share with one additional occupant plus that person’s dependent children. Other states have their own rules, and your lease may say who can live there.
What does our roommate agreement template cover?
It’s written to be read out loud at the kitchen table, which is the best way to use it.
The home and the lease. The address, the landlord, the lease dates, and who is on the lease. This makes it clear the roommate agreement sits alongside the lease and doesn’t replace it.
Rent shares. Each person’s share, and who sends the payment to the landlord. Unequal shares for unequal rooms are fine; write them down.
Utilities and household costs. Which bills are split and how, whose name each account is in, and how people pay each other back. A line for the internet, streaming and shared supplies saves the most arguments per word.
Security deposit. How much each person put in, and how deductions for damage will be shared. The Davis guide notes that when one roommate leaves and another joins, the deposit share is often settled between the outgoing and incoming roommate, so our template covers that.
Bedrooms and shared spaces. Who has which room, and what’s shared.
House rules. Cleaning, quiet hours, overnight guests, pets, smoking, parking. Keep them specific. “Guests up to two nights a week” beats “be reasonable.”
Moving out early. How much notice to give the others, whether the leaving roommate helps find a replacement (who the landlord may need to approve), and the reminder that leaving doesn’t end anyone’s obligations to the landlord.
Disagreements. A simple step: talk, then try a neutral third party, before anyone heads to court.
How do you fill it in and sign it?
- Get everyone together with the lease in hand. Copy the rent and lease dates from it exactly.
- Agree the money first: rent shares, bills, deposit. It’s the part most likely to go wrong later.
- Agree the rules next, and delete any that don’t matter to your household.
- Each roommate signs. For three or more roommates, copy a signature block for each.
- Everyone keeps a copy. Revisit it when someone moves in or out.
Here’s a hypothetical: four friends rent a house near a campus for $3,200 a month. The two larger bedrooms pay $900 each and the two smaller ones pay $700. They list those numbers in section 3, agree that one person’s card pays the electric bill and the others send their quarter by the 5th, and set a 45-day notice rule for anyone who wants to leave. It takes twenty minutes, and it saves the awkward conversation in month seven.
E-signing works fine for a roommate agreement. The federal ESIGN Act says a contract can’t be denied legal effect just because it’s in electronic form. Our guide on getting a document signed by multiple people covers the practical side when there are four of you. Download it, fill it in together, and send it with any e-signature tool you like. (If you’d like to try SignWren when it launches, join the waitlist.)
This template and guide are general information, not legal advice. For a specific dispute, talk to a lawyer or a tenant rights organization where you live.
Template from signwren.com. General information, not legal advice. Check your state's rules and adapt it before you use it.
ROOMMATE AGREEMENT
This Roommate Agreement ("Agreement") is made on [date] between the following people, who share the home described below (each a "Roommate"):
Roommate 1: [full legal name]
Roommate 2: [full legal name]
(Add a line for each additional roommate.)
1. The Home and the Lease
The Roommates live at [street address, unit, city, state, ZIP] (the "Home"), under a lease with [landlord's name or company] (the "Landlord") dated [date], running from [start date] to [end date] (the "Lease").
The Roommates named on the Lease are: [names]. Roommates not named on the Lease: [names, or "none"].
This Agreement is only between the Roommates. It does not change the Lease, it does not bind the Landlord, and it does not reduce what any Roommate owes the Landlord under the Lease. If this Agreement and the Lease conflict, the Lease controls as between the Roommates and the Landlord.
2. Bedrooms and Shared Spaces
Each Roommate has private use of the following bedroom:
- Roommate 1: [describe room]
- Roommate 2: [describe room]
Shared by all Roommates: [kitchen, living room, bathroom(s), laundry, yard, storage].
No Roommate enters another Roommate's bedroom without permission, except in an emergency.
3. Rent
Total monthly rent under the Lease is [$ amount], due to the Landlord on the [day] day of each month.
Each Roommate's share is:
- Roommate 1: [$ amount]
- Roommate 2: [$ amount]
☐ Each Roommate pays their share directly to the Landlord.
☐ Each Roommate pays their share to [name] by the [day] day of each month, and [name] pays the full rent to the Landlord on time and shares proof of payment with the others.
If a Roommate's share is late, that Roommate pays any late fee the Landlord charges because of it.
4. Utilities and Household Costs
| Bill |
Account holder |
How it's split |
| Electricity |
[name] |
[equal shares or other split] |
| Gas |
[name] |
[split] |
| Water, sewer, trash |
[name] |
[split] |
| Internet |
[name] |
[split] |
| Other: [describe] |
[name] |
[split] |
The account holder shares a copy of each bill within [number] days of receiving it, and each Roommate pays their share to the account holder within [number] days after that, by [payment method].
Shared household supplies (for example cleaning products, toilet paper, dish soap): ☐ split equally, bought in turns ☐ shared fund of [$ amount] each per month ☐ other: [describe]. Food is ☐ bought separately ☐ shared as follows: [describe].
5. Security Deposit
The security deposit paid to the Landlord is [$ amount]. Each Roommate paid:
- Roommate 1: [$ amount]
- Roommate 2: [$ amount]
When the Landlord returns the deposit, it is divided in proportion to what each Roommate paid, after deductions. A deduction for damage caused by one Roommate or their guest comes out of that Roommate's share. Other deductions (for example general cleaning or shared-area damage no one caused alone) are shared in proportion to each Roommate's contribution.
6. House Rules
- Cleaning: [e.g. weekly rotation for kitchen, bathroom and trash; each person cleans up after cooking the same day].
- Quiet hours: [e.g. 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. on weeknights].
- Overnight guests: up to [number] nights per week per Roommate, and no guest stays more than [number] nights in a row without everyone's agreement. Guests must follow the Lease.
- Pets: ☐ None ☐ Allowed as follows, if the Lease permits: [describe]. The pet's owner pays for any damage or cleaning the pet causes.
- Smoking and vaping: ☐ Not allowed inside ☐ Allowed only [where], if the Lease permits.
- Parking: [assigned spaces or rules].
- Shared items: [e.g. borrowing food, dishes, electronics only with permission].
- Other: [any other rule].
7. Damage and Repairs
Each Roommate tells the others and the Landlord promptly about any needed repair. A Roommate who causes damage (personally or through a guest or pet) pays for it. Requests to the Landlord are made in writing, as the Lease requires.
8. Moving Out Early
A Roommate who wants to leave before the Lease ends will give the other Roommates at least [number] days' written notice.
The leaving Roommate remains responsible for their share of rent and bills through ☐ the end of the Lease ☐ the date a replacement Roommate moves in and starts paying ☐ [other date] (tick one).
A replacement Roommate must be approved by ☐ all remaining Roommates ☐ a majority of remaining Roommates, and by the Landlord if the Lease requires it. The incoming and outgoing Roommates settle the outgoing Roommate's deposit share between themselves, unless the Landlord handles it differently.
Leaving early does not release anyone from the Lease unless the Landlord agrees in writing.
9. End of the Lease
At least [number] days before the Lease ends, the Roommates will discuss whether to renew. Each Roommate removes their belongings, cleans their room and helps clean shared areas before move-out.
10. Disagreements
If a disagreement comes up, the Roommates will first talk it through directly. If that doesn't resolve it within [number] days, they will try a neutral third party or a community mediation service before starting any legal claim.
11. General Terms
Entire agreement. This Agreement is the entire agreement between the Roommates about sharing the Home. It sits alongside the Lease and does not replace it.
Changes. Any change must be in writing and signed by all Roommates.
Governing law. This Agreement is governed by the laws of the State of [State].
Severability. If any part of this Agreement is found invalid, the rest stays in effect.
Counterparts and electronic signatures. The parties agree this agreement may be signed electronically and in counterparts, and an electronic signature has the same effect as a handwritten one.
Signatures
Roommate 1
Signature: ______________________________
Name: [full name]
Date: [date]
Roommate 2
Signature: ______________________________
Name: [full name]
Date: [date]
Copy the signature block for each additional roommate.