How to Draft a Roommate Agreement

Video Transcript

"Hi, I'm Damon Thompson, I've been a landlord for over 10 years and I have 5 multi-unit buildings. This is, how to draft a roommate agreement. The first thing you need to do in drafting a roommate agreement is, you need to decide what is important and what needs to be agreed upon. With a roommate agreement this person is coming into your home, so you want to make sure that you protect yourself as well as you protect your potential tenant. You want to make sure that everything is spelled out. You can download a sample contract from the Internet or go to an office supply store, you can grab one of these, take a look at it. But what you want to do is spell out everything. You want to make sure that you talk about who's responsible for what, in terms of maintenance, in terms of upkeep, in terms of cleaning and chores, groceries. Because essentially this person is sharing your home with you. So you want to make sure that everyone is respected and everyones needs are met in this situation. The next thing you what to do is give this agreement to a attorney, have the attorney look it over, because you want to make sure that your rights and your roommates rights are covered. You want to make sure that everyone is comfortable with what's written, and an attorney is the best way to have that happen. Then you want to make sure you review the agreement with your roommate. Again, you want to go over everything, because essentially again, this is a stranger coming into your home, so you want to make sure that they're comfortable and you are comfortable as well. Then you want to make sure you have a clear process for resolving issues. In any relationship issues may arise, so you want to make sure you have a clear and concise way of being fair for both parties involved. And the final thing, I can't stress this enough, you need to make it clear, everything needs to be clear. You have a stranger moving into your home and you want to make sure that nothing is taken for granted. You need to be clear, your roommate needs to be clear, that's the best way to have a harmonious relationship. I'm Damon Thompson and that's how to draft a roommate agreement."