I'm looking to rent a house with some friends, is there anything I should know to be careful?

Question

Like what should I look for when looking at the house? It's the first one I've ever rented so ANY advice would be nice!

What should I be wary of also?

OH and my apartment lease ends November 1st, should I start looking now?

Just HELP! lol

Answer 1

never put anything in your name except things that you are 100% responsible for.  

Don't do it unless you are pay 100% of the rent when (not if) your roommate skips.

Lay the ground rules now (in writing) about overnight (or life time) guests like boy/girlfriends.

Good luck.

Answer 2

Ditto prior response. Don't do it unless you are able to pay 100% of rent, utilities, fees, etc. when your roommate(s) leave, become unemployed, have their wages garnished ...

Establish ironclad rules regarding "common areas," i.e., keeping kitchen/food prep area meticulously clean, identifying your personal food or beverage in fridge. Ditto bathrooms, entryway, laundry room, living room/family room, dining room.

Be sure that your friends have similar personal clocks. If you practice your violin every Saturday morning at 9:00, this could cause friction with the roomie who sleeps until well past noon. If you must go to sleep at 10:00 pm, you will not be happy with the roomie who test drives the new sound system at 11:30 pm.

Parking situation can create grief among roommates. Is there enough room for the owned autos to be side by side, or will one car park behind another? What happens when the early riser is parked in by the dude who sleeps until noon? Or worse yet, you are parked in by the one dedicated runner in the house who is out practicing for a 10K.

Now, what to look for in a house? That's even scarier. Location, location, location; followed by condition. Last year's utility bills, and why did previous tenants leave? Who cuts the grass, removes the snow and trash; who is responsible for "minor" maintenance and repairs, who do you call when the heat goes out at 3:00 in the morning? Can the landlord provide credible references from prior tenants? What is the policy regarding pets, etc. Will the local ordinance allow more than two unrelated adults to live in one unit?

Finally, make sure you are not renting from an individual or company that may be facing foreclosure in the next few months. A valid lease will protect a tenant (for the duration of the lease) when a house or apartment building is sold; if the house is seized by the mortage company, lessees have little if any rights.

All in all, if you have not dealt with roommates before, this may not be a good time to acquire roommates; in today's housing market, renting a house may not be such a good idea, either.

If there is nothing terribly wrong with your apartment, you might want to stay put until you can actually buy a house. Then, you can have roommates to share expenses, but you would have the say so about when it's time for said roommates to leave.

Answer 3

When you've got roommates, you have to have everyone understand that this is now a business relationship.

We're sharing the house so everyone can rent cheap.

But, the landlord will hold everyone responsible for the entire rent.

Which means if someone skips out on their share of the rent, someone else has to make up the difference, or the landlord will throw everyone out.

You also need to have an agreement before going in on what to do with sharing utilities, and the cost.  Otherwise, you'll end up with:

"You're always on the phone with your friends.  Why should I have to pay half of your phone bill."

Here's what I suggest:

The most responsible one of the group needs to open up a second checking account.

Everyone's share of the rent and utilities goes into that account.

Only rent and utilities get paid out of it.

That way, it's easy for anyone to review the checkbook.

Answer 4

You need to get a cohabitation agreement in writing between all parties that you will be living with.

Break down all costs and how they are to be shared.

When they are due.

Who will be tracking who has paid and how.

Rules for smoking, drinking, noise, tv use, shared food expenses, drug use, sale or storage of drugs, parking, friends staying over, and anything else you can think of that might be an issue in the future.

If you want someone to move out how much notice they need to give other parties and how much of the remaining expenses they are responsible for if they don't find an acceptable person to replace them.

New rules can be added with an adendum if signed by a (some, a majority, or all parties) you decide how this is done.

How rules are inforced. You can charge a fine and put it toward a food fund or party fund or something.

People get this type of contract not just with roommates but with long term partners who decide to live together and not get married. It's just a legal way of spelling out who is responsible for what and what the consequences are if they aren't followed.

Answer 5

Living with other people is an art. It requires everyone involved to expand their minds and to become more tolerant of people's eccentricities.

Things to shun when looking at a place to rent: Bad neighborhoods.

Cockroaches in every drawer.

Big cracks in the walls.

An oven/stove that is 50 years old.

An oil heater more than 20 years old.

Very few outlets for electrical appliances, including phone jacks. There should be at least 2-3 outlets in every room plus 2-3 phone jacks per floor.

Differing standards of cleanliness. I have seen many households fall apart over this. I learned to get everyone to agree to clean the bathroom on a weekly rotational basis, for example. It is a royal PIA to get everyone to do their dishes in a timely manner.

Answer 6

I will be straight up try to release the current apt you have now if the landlord will let you, it costs alot to move. Never move with friends, trust me on this, you will end up having problems, mostly everyone does, and if you do not believe me just type in this keyword in the yahoo answers, moving in with friends, you should read the horror stories that alot of people go through, do yourself justice and dont move in with friends.

good luck man