About Sylvia Bergthold Expertise I can answer questions dealing with roommate situations including compatability, leases, placing roommate wanted ads, what you have to offer to a roommate, sharing of utilities and other services, interviewing techniques and questions, some legal aspects of housesharing, clearance information, etc.
Experience I have had roommates in my home for over 32 years and am the author of:
"SORRY, THE BOA HAS GOTTA GO!" A Roommate Survival Guide
Publications The Los Angeles Times, The HB-FV Independent, The Arizona Tribune, Lansing Michigan Rental Guide, Roommate Locator Newsletter, The Plain Dealer,, Las Vegas Sun, Apartment Lifestyles Magazine, Instyle Magazine, The Whiz.com, Cosmopolitan, Under 25, The Portsmouth Herald
Expert: Sylvia Bergthold Date: 12/18/2006 Subject: major roomate problems
Question So it all started off that my roommate and I signed a one year lease agreement together. I moved out 2 months before the lease was up because of my roommates poor decision-making and her uncleanliness. She would basically party every night of the week and leaving the place a complete dump(leaving me with no sleep,stress, and a mess to pick up after her). Also now she has boyfriends that stay their every night(basically living there now) without my consent and not part of the agreement. Before I left I had cleaned out the bedroom I had occupied and put a lock on the door so no one would be allowed in there. I go back to the townhome about 3-4 weeks after I moved out to find the "boyfriends" still occupying the home, uncleanliness to the home, and damage brought upon the house including my room(basically my room was broken into and is being occupied by someone else). My question is what legal actions can I put upon my roommate and can I sue her for anything including the rent I still pay at the home(even when they basically took over my space of the home)...????
Answer Hi Natalie
You should have gone to the apartment manager/landlord and told him what was going on. Handling the situation as you did could get you in trouble.
First: you put a lock on your bedroom door. Unless you gave a key to the landlord, this was probably forbidden by the lease agreement. ALL landlords HAVE to have access to everyroom in every apartment due to Fire Codes.
Second: you should have told the landlord you were moving because of all the "activity" that is going on in your apartment, including the "overnight" guests. Also given him a WRITTEN 30 day notice you were moving out stating the above reasons. You DID NOT sign up for this in your lease agreement. It was just originally you and your roommate.
Third: you probably should have stopped paying rent and utilities. The reason is you now had NO CONTROL over what was happening in the apartment because you were no longer there.
Fourth: You should have had your name removed off the lease when you decided to move out. NOW you are also responsible for any damages to the place due to your roommate and her "friends". You are an equal signer on the the lease therefore that makes you equally responsible. And no you cannot assume the landlord will know WHO caused the damage and when. It will be your word against your roommates.
Fifth: The landlord will generally go after the roommate that is still occupying the place for the entire rent. He is NOT going to go chasing all over town to collect from you. I understand WHY you did this however. You didn't want your roommate to get evicted for non-payment of rent because your name would also appear on the eviction notice. That would send your credit rating into the toilet.
Sixth: You can TRY suing your roommate in court but I wouldn't hold out too much hope. She is a number one A Flake and trying to collect a court ordered judgement (assuming you win the case), is another whole problem. You would probably have to have her wages garnished to get your money (very very slowly) if at all. My advice here is to bite the bullet, suffer your losses and go on with your life (without your roommate of course).
As I see this whole scenario Natalie, it is apparent that you were totally incompatible with each other for various reasons. Also you did NOT write out a separate roommate agreement outlining what rules you wanted to live by. That is a very necessary step when sharing your living environment.
