OT - renters guarantor agreements

[Spaghetti Legs]

So, my oldest son is working out a rental apartment with a bunch of guys for his senior year of college in LA. He lived in dorm first year and fraternity house the next 2 years. He sends me this form the landlord is requiring for a parental guarantor, namely that I agree to guarantee payment of rent and assume liability for damages incurred. That’s all fine by me but there’s other language in which I automatically agree to be liable in a lawsuit and jointly liable with all the other renters.

I’m happy to hear legal opinions on this but realize this is a bike forum. I’m more interested how common this is. Others here signed one of these for their kids? The cynic in me is picturing some other kid’s bong setting the building on fire and now I’m in a lawsuit for the value of an LA apartment building.

[unterhausen]

probably should get renters insurance.

Otherwise, I have no idea.

[charliedid]

Not uncommon to require a guarantor on a lease for a minor/student that has no income. We required it when I was leasing apartments. That said (and I am not a lawyer) the two attorneys who lived in the building always laughed when I asked them to sign a new yearly lease. They would sign anything :-)

Renters insurance is a great idea and some landlords now require it to rent from them.

[Spaghetti Legs]

Originally Posted by unterhausen

probably should get renters insurance.

Otherwise, I have no idea.

Yeah, definitely going there and going to put a high ceiling on the liability part.

[djg21]

Originally Posted by Spaghetti Legs

So, my oldest son is working out a rental apartment with a bunch of guys for his senior year of college in LA. He lived in dorm first year and fraternity house the next 2 years. He sends me this form the landlord is requiring for a parental guarantor, namely that I agree to guarantee payment of rent and assume liability for damages incurred. That’s all fine by me but there’s other language in which I automatically agree to be liable in a lawsuit and jointly liable with all the other renters.

I’m happy to hear legal opinions on this but realize this is a bike forum. I’m more interested how common this is. Others here signed one of these for their kids? The cynic in me is picturing some other kid’s bong setting the building on fire and now I’m in a lawsuit for the value of an LA apartment building.

Talk to a local lawyer who is familiar with landlord-tenant law and issues in your area. If I were a landlord renting to college students I’d try to protect myself too.

[rwsaunders]

Having had three kids go through undergrad programs and a couple in their first apartments, I've co-signed quite a few rental agreements where one is joint and severable wth your kid, as well as with their roommates and/or their parents. I never had an issue as the kids knew their roommates pretty well and they were decent kids...my luck I guess. I'm surprised that the rental agreement doesn't require you to have renter's insurance and if it doesn't, I'd suggest that you buy a policy.

In a hot college area rental market (I'm calling out you Columbus, Ohio), the terms always seem to be pretty one-sided and punitive, such as in one case, the landlord would only accept one check, meaning that a point person had to collect rent from the other roomies. Don't like the terms, good luck. In a more competitive rental environment (hats off to you Bloomington, Indiana), better deals, nicer units, combined with more lenient rental terms (and prices) are the norm.

PS I paid $50/year for legal services for one kid, as his school offered this program, which included rental agreement reviews and landlord interaction if needed, among other services. The attorney reviewed all of his leases with him and then they forwarded the agreements to me for further discussion. It helped my kid take some ownership in dealing with the rental process and opened his eyes quite a bit to what could go wrong and more importably, the responsibilities and repercussions.

[zzy]

You may find yourself liable for the ENTIRE lease, not just your son's portion. I would make sure everyone has a guarantor and you're confident everyone can and will pay. Friendships can change fast in college. Renter's insurance is common sense for many reasons, and cheap. You also have leverage here - I would strike the clause that agrees to a lawsuit. Many landlords put shady things into leases if they can get away with it.

[BobbyJones]

Anecdotal Story:

A friend and 2 pals moved into a shared NYC apartment post college.

Cat- not his - knocked over a candle (don't know the exact details) and the resultant fire did a number on several apartments in the building. My friend wasn't even in the state when it happened.

It was seven-ish years of legal hell hanging over his head. I'd hate to think the repercusssions if his parents were involved.

Things are never a problem until they're a problem!

[Spaghetti Legs]

Originally Posted by zzy

You may find yourself liable for the ENTIRE lease, not just your son's portion.

Yes, my concern. The boys (10 of them!) aren’t going to return it until all parents have signed it, but I still worry about deadbeat parents. I’m not sure how much leverage the renters would have. This is Westwood, 2 blocks off UCLA campus, so my guess is a popular location.

Originally Posted by BobbyJones

Anecdotal Story:

A friend and 2 pals moved into a shared NYC apartment post college.

Cat- not his - knocked over a candle (don't know the exact details) and the resultant fire did a number on several apartments in the building. My friend wasn't even in the state when it happened.

It was seven-ish years of legal hell hanging over his head. I'd hate to think the repercusssions if his parents were involved.

Things are never a problem until they're a problem!

Yes! Exactly the type of worst case scenario I envision. I’m generally not anxious about these sorts of things but I’ve had a fairly recent bad employment contract experience and I’m edging towards retirement, so don’t want to blow up my nest egg.

[pasadena]

It sounds like standard boilerplate stuff.
In CA, the landlord has very few rights and probably why they would write up something to do arbitration or sign contracts to avoid costly legal actions.

I'm surprised anyone rents to a group of kids in CA.
You have protections in CA as a renter, so it's not something to really worry about.

[zzy]

If this is a lease for 10 people in LA, I imagine it's for a lot of money. Well worth having a lawyer read over the document and have each signator understand what they are really signing.

[C40_guy]

Originally Posted by Spaghetti Legs

I’m generally not anxious about these sorts of things but I’ve had a fairly recent bad employment contract experience and I’m edging towards retirement, so don’t want to blow up my nest egg.

Lawyers go after the deep pockets. The kids don't have them. You do.

My daughter is a renter in the high rent corner of Connecticut. When she was arranging car insurance, I asked what would happen if she had a fender bender with one of the typical $150K+ cars cruising the streets of Greenwich, etc.

The answer from the USAA rep inspired her to add on supplemental insurance, an umbrella policy...

[HenryA]

Originally Posted by djg21

Talk to a local lawyer who is familiar with landlord-tenant law and issues in your area. If I were a landlord renting to college students I’d try to protect myself too.

This^^^^^^


A California lawyer is who you should ask for advice on this.

Beyond that, 10 college boys living in one house - the chance of nothing happening is zero.

[Michael Maddox]

I'm a full-time landlord and happen to live in a college town.

The problem is that the KIDS are extremely mobile, with unproven credit and rental histories. If they're MALE, then it's even worse...the damage and filth left by a pack of 19-20 something boys is absolutely mind-blowing. As a landlord, I KNOW these university students are likely to make a mess, start hating each other before the term of the lease is out, then try to scurry away, leaving one or two holding the bag. This happens ALL THE TIME.

I am NOT in business to coddle your little darling on their first big adventure off at university. I am in it solely to make a return on my investment. The students in the apartments don't have the money to make up for the loss because of damage, unpaid rents, or pretty much ANYTHING. Thus, I'm not going to rent to the students, I'm going to rent the apartment to YOU, the parent.

It's common EVERYWHERE. If you don't want to play, you simply don't get to rent my property. So, do your homework and decide if the roommates AND their respective co-signors are people you really want to get in bed with. It CAN end up being a very expensive and very short bad relationship.

I've been speaking hypothetically, so don't take offense. I got out of student rentals YEARS ago. I do mid-level homes to new families, divorcees, and retirees, mostly...people on their way to home ownership or on their way OUT of home ownership. I have been around the block with students, though...and after a couple of years, you quickly understand the ruthless reputations that many student apartment businesses get. They are generally FORCED to be that way, simply to survive. Simply put...college-age boys are GENERALLY horrible.

[ORMojo]

Just to answer the OP's question, yes, I signed one for all of my daughter's apartment rental years in D.C., without concerns . . . because I knew the other kid/roommate, and her father was a lawyer!