The Colorado roommate agreement (“room rental agreement”) is a document that all co-tenants in a roommate or shared residential situation must sign. This contract lays out the responsibilities of each roommate, including financial expectations, terms, and other rules associated with sharing the space.
A room rental agreement is a document that is used to help two parties manage to pay rent and utilities on time. This is an agreement that can be considered when an individual is looking to rent an apartment or a house, and the rent is a bit too high for the person to pay alone. A room rental agreement can be a great solution that will help make the cost of the unit more manageable. The contract will be legally binding; however, only one of the tenants will be on the original lease.
This document will state that the roommate will have the same allowances as the original tenant, but they can into the agreement after the lease was signed. The document should cover topics like the dates of the roommate agreement, the rent that is due for each person, and the utilities that are going to be shared as well. Before the document is signed, it is essential that the parties discuss and agree upon the rules of the unit, and which spaces are shared that both parties can enter. Bedrooms of the other parties should not be entered unless otherwise permitted.
The room rental agreement can also be used to set forth the chores that each roommate should be responsible for as well as the repairs that may need to be tended to. If a repairman needs to be called, the cost of their services should be split down the middle, unless another agreement is outlined in this document.
In the state of Colorado, any information that the original tenant was given with the lease when they moved in should be shared with the person who is considering entering into a room rental. Also, the original tenant should make sure that a room rental lease is permitted by the landlord before signing any documents. It is uncommon that it will be an issue, but some landlords do not permit long term guests to stay in the unit for more than 14 days.
Requirements of a Colorado Room Rental Agreement
As with any legal document, there are going to be things that need to be included in the paperwork before it is signed, but there are also other fees and information that may need to be provided as well.
The original tenant will need to provide all of the landlord’s information so that the new tenant will have a means of contacting them when and if it is needed. The name of the management company, their address, and their telephone number should all be listed in the document. If there were any lead or mold notifications given to the original tenant when they first signed the lease, they need to be given to the new tenant as well so that they are aware of any dangers that may exist on the property.
The new tenant will be required to give a security deposit that will be held in case there are any damages to the property that need to be repaired when they vacate. This amount cannot be more than a full month’s rent. If pets are going to be moving into the unit with the new roommate, then a pet deposit may also be required. This amount can be a small one time fee or something that the management company asked for a small fee to be added to the rent each month. This amount is not regulated by the state, but it should be a reasonable amount that will be used to pay for any damage that the pet may do.
How to Write a Room Rental Agreement in Colorado
When writing a room rental agreement, there are going to be a few topics that will need to be discussed in the document. The sections that will need to be written in a Colorado room rental agreement include:
Date
The very first thing that should be mentioned in this document is the date. This will be the date that the document was written or drawn up, which will indicate to the individual renting the room that all of the information in the document was considered recently for the agreement.
Parties Involved
This is a part of the agreement that will state the name of the individuals who are entering into the agreement. The original tenant will be called the principal tenant, while the new tenant will be called simply the new tenant. If there are already additional roommates in the unit, they will be listed as co-tenants in the document. In addition to the names of the parties, a good phone number to reach them should also be listed in this section as well. Make sure to include the landlord’s information here as well so that all of the tenants have access to the information.
Property Description
This section should mention the exact address of the unit that is being rented. It should include the apartment number, floor, or additional information that is listed in the address. The principal tenant may also wish to add the county that the property is located in this part of the agreement. Also, if there is any property damage that is already done to the unit before the new tenant moves in, it should be listed in this section as well.
Lease Dates
It is essential that the new tenant knows the terms of the original lease. This includes the start date, how long it lasts, and when the lease will expire. This will give the new tenant an idea of what to expect, even if the lease can be renewed. At the time of the renewal, the new tenant should have the option to sign on to the lease, but if they remain off of the official lease, a new room rental agreement should be written.
Rental Payment Amount
The entire rental payment that is due each month as well as the day that it is due should be listed at the top of this section. Since this document is designed to be used when there are multiple people sharing the same space, it is important that there is a breakdown of who pays how much of the rent so that it can be agreed upon. When the rooms vary in size, it is likely that the amount paid will be based on the size of the room that they are renting. Room rental agreements are typically not per person, but the rates are broken down based on the space that they can call their own. Also, the payment method that the tenants will need to use when they are ready to pay rent will need to be listed here. Will each person be responsible for taking their share of the rent to the management office or will one person collect it and deliver it?
Security Deposit Breakdown
If a security deposit is required, then it is going to need to be listed in this document so that it can be split evenly amongst the tenants and that each person can be given their share of the security deposit back when the agreement and the lease ends. Also, make sure to add a clause in this section of the document that will inform the tenants which section of the unit will fall under their security deposit. If a shared space or a specific room is damaged due to a pet or a guest, it will be taken out of the appropriate security deposit.
Utilities
If the utilities are used by all of the tenants, then the bills should be split evenly. One roommate is not going to want to foot the bill for the utilities, so anything that is not covered by the landlord should be listed here and split equally or based on a percentage for each individual. A landlord may cover the cost of heat, water, and electric in some areas of Colorado, so if this is the case, those utilities do not need to be paid by the tenants.
Additional Agreements or Disputes
This section can cover things like cleaning, doing repairs, and having guests over. Anything that may seem like it could be an issue at a later point in time can be listed here so that it does not cause the tenants to have a dispute later on. If the rules are clearly written, then there are no issues that can be taken to court, which will only add unwanted legal fees.
Vacating the Property
This is a section that will not take up a lot of space, but it needs to be mentioned so that the tenants all know how to go about moving out when they are ready. The process should be discussed and agreed upon with everyone in the unit. The space will need to be cleaned, and any maintenance that needs to be done should take place. The most important thing to list here is how long the tenant must give the other residents before they move out. Typically, this is a period of 30 days to 60 days.
Signatures
The document will finish with the signatures of the principal tenant, the new tenant, and any co-tenants. Each person will also need to date the document next to their signature.
