Roommate Clause
in Your Lease
What it actually means, what Minnesota law says, what's specific to Minneapolis - and exactly what to do. In plain English.
Quick Summary - What You Need to Know
- Our record of Minn. Stat. ch. 504B finds no deadline for telling a landlord that a new roommate has moved in. Any notice period for adding someone is a term to look for in the lease.
- § 504B.001, subd. 12 counts "all other regular occupants of that dwelling unit" as residential tenants for the chapter's purposes, beside the person occupying under the lease or contract.
- In a shared-metered building, § 504B.216, subd. 7(b) splits the water and sewer bill by "the number of tenants listed on the lease", for leases entered into or renewed on or after January 1, 2025.
- Minneapolis allows one family per dwelling unit under § 244.820(a), which adds that "unrelated persons may occupy a dwelling unit when such occupancy is permitted and authorized".
- § 244.810 requires 150 square feet of floor area for the first occupant, 70 more for the second and 100 for each additional occupant, and a sleeping room may hold no more than four persons.
Understanding the Roommate Clause
A roommate clause decides who may live in the unit, what has to happen before someone joins, and how soon the landlord must hear about it. On that last question, our record of Minnesota's landlord and tenant chapter, Minn. Stat. ch. 504B, finds no deadline, which leaves your lease as the document that answers it.
What the chapter does say is who counts. A roommate who lives in the unit regularly falls within its definition of a residential tenant under § 504B.001, subd. 12. In a shared-metered building, the names on the lease drive the water and sewer split.
Minneapolis answers a different question, about the household and the space. Its Housing Maintenance Code allows one family per unit, describes a family as a household intending to live together for 30 days or more, and sets a floor area for each occupant. None of those figures is a notice period.
What renters assume
That the 30 days in Minneapolis's definition of a family is the time a renter has to tell the landlord about a new roommate.
What is actually true
The 30 days sits inside the definition of a family in § 244.40: persons "intending upon residing and living together as a single household and housekeeping unit in a dwelling unit for thirty (30) days or more". It describes a household, not a notice window.
Our record of Minn. Stat. ch. 504B finds no deadline for reporting a roommate at all.
The bars in the comparison on this page measure the deadline for telling a landlord about a new roommate. Two of the 21 rows carry a figure: New York City at 30 days and Seattle at 30 days under a Seattle rule. The other 19 rows carry none.
Twelve of those read no statute: Austin, Los Angeles, Miami, Chicago, Denver, Phoenix, Atlanta, Nashville, Philadelphia, Portland, Boston and Las Vegas. Washington, DC reads lease controls consent, Columbus no statute; lease controls, Newark no statute; city occupancy caps and Detroit no statute; zoning family limit.
Charlotte and Minneapolis read no set deadline, and Baltimore no set deadline; zoning family limit.
The Minneapolis label stops at the deadline. The 30 days in the city's family definition describes a household that intends to live together, and our record of it carries no notice period.
Plain English Version
Three separate questions sit under a roommate clause in Minneapolis. Whether someone may move in, and how fast you must say so, comes from your lease; our record of Minnesota's landlord and tenant chapter finds no deadline for it.
How many people the unit may hold comes from the city: one family per unit, 150 square feet of floor area for the first occupant and more for each one after, and no more than four people in a sleeping room. And in a building on one shared water meter, the names on the lease set your share of the water and sewer bill.
Roommate Clause Example - What the Wording Looks Like in Minneapolis, MN
The sample clause below is real lease language - a court quoted it word for word, and then ruled on it. What the judge decided is at the bottom of this block.
Find the equivalent paragraph in your own lease and read the two side by side. The wording will differ; the moving parts rarely do.
REIMBURSEMENT. You must promptly reimburse us for loss, damage, or cost of repairs or service caused anywhere in the apartment community by your or any guest's or occupant's improper use or negligence. […]
Quoted from the published opinion in Churchill Forge, Inc. v. Brown, 61 S.W.3d 368 (Tex. 2001). Judicial opinions are not subject to copyright; the lease language is reproduced in limited part for commentary under 17 U.S.C. § 107.
“You must”
The lease addresses its signers. Minnesota's chapter draws a wider circle around the word tenant: under Minn. Stat. § 504B.001, subd. 12, a residential tenant is a person occupying under a lease or contract and also “all other regular occupants of that dwelling unit”. Our Minnesota record describes who counts for the chapter's remedies, such as the rent escrow action in § 504B.385; it does not say who answers under a reimbursement sentence like this one. The Texas court enforced it against a co-signer who had not herself been negligent.
“cost of repairs or service”
This sentence bills repairs and service by fault. In a shared-metered building, Minnesota bills one service by headcount instead. § 504B.216, subd. 7(b) allocates a tenant's water and sewer bill “based on the number of tenants listed on the lease as a proportion of the occupancy of all the units as listed on the leases in the building.”
“guest's or occupant's”
A guest and an occupant sit side by side in this lease. Minnesota's wording separates them by regularity: the chapter's definition reaches “all other regular occupants of that dwelling unit”. Minneapolis separates a household by intent and time. Under Minneapolis Code of Ordinances § 244.40, a family is persons intending to live together as a single household “for thirty (30) days or more and not for short-term, tourist or transient use”.
“improper use”
Improper use is the lease's test for a bill. Minneapolis has a use test of its own, for the unit itself. § 244.820(a) provides that no dwelling unit shall be occupied by more than one family, and that “unrelated persons may occupy a dwelling unit when such occupancy is permitted and authorized”. § 244.810 then requires 150 square feet for the first occupant, 70 more for the second and 100 for each additional occupant, and no more than four persons in a sleeping room.
The co-signer's defence failed. JoAnn Brown signed an apartment lease as a cotenant with her adult son. He was alleged to have started a fire that damaged the complex, the landlord sued only her, and she argued she could not be charged for damage she had not caused. The Texas Supreme Court disagreed, reversed the summary judgment she had won and held this sentence enforceable against a cotenant who was not herself negligent. The route ran through two sections. Tex. Prop. Code § 92.052(b) gives a landlord no duty to repair damage caused by the tenant, an occupant or a guest, so § 92.006(e) had no repair duty to stop the parties contracting over; and the fair-notice doctrine did not apply, because the sentence does not shift the landlord's own negligence onto the tenant. The court added that neither statute, common law nor the Restatement bars “requiring a tenant to reimburse the landlord for damages negligently caused by the tenant or one occupying the premises with the tenant's consent.” A dissent would have held the sentence unenforceable outright because it was not underlined or conspicuous, as § 92.006(e)(4) requires. This is 2001 Texas law, decided on the Texas Property Code - state-specific, and not a national rule.
One court, one lease, one state. That answer is not automatically yours, and your lease may be worded to land differently. Use this to know what to look for and what to ask - your state's tenant hotline or a local tenant attorney can answer it for your document.
Minnesota Law on Roommate Clause
- A roommate who lives in the unit regularly is a residential tenant for the purposes of Chapter 504B. Minn. Stat. § 504B.001, subd. 12 provides that "Residential tenant" means "a person who is occupying a dwelling in a residential building under a lease or contract, whether oral or written, that requires the payment of money or exchange of services, all other regular occupants of that dwelling unit, or a resident of a manufactured home park." The chapter's tenant remedies, such as the rent escrow action in § 504B.385, are written for a residential tenant.
- Who is listed on the lease can change a utility bill. In a shared-metered residential building, Minn. Stat. § 504B.216, subd. 7(b) requires that a tenant's apportioned water and sewer bill be "allocated to each unit based on the number of tenants listed on the lease as a proportion of the occupancy of all the units as listed on the leases in the building." Laws 2024, chapter 107, section 10 made that section effective January 1, 2025, "for leases entered into or renewed on or after that date."
- One roommate's exit under the violence protection ends the lease for everyone on it. Minn. Stat. § 504B.206, subd. 3(b) provides that "In a tenancy with multiple tenants, one of whom is terminating the lease under subdivision 1, any lease governing all remaining tenants is terminated at the later of the end of the month or the end of the rent interval in which one tenant terminates the lease". All tenants owe rent for that full month, and "Any tenant whose tenancy was terminated under this paragraph may reapply to enter into a new lease with the landlord."
- Minneapolis caps headcount by floor area. Minneapolis Code of Ordinances § 244.810 requires "a minimum superficial floor area of not less than one hundred fifty (150) square feet for the first occupant, seventy (70) additional square feet for the second occupant and one hundred (100) square feet for each additional occupant in excess of two (2)." Rooms used only for sleeping need seventy square feet for one person, ninety for two and fifty more for each person beyond two, "However, occupancy of a sleeping room shall not exceed four (4) persons." Section 244.40 counts as an occupant "Any person over one (1) year of age".
Sources include Minn. Stat. § 504B.001, subd. 12; Minn. Stat. § 504B.216, subd. 7; Minn. Stat. § 504B.206, subd. 3; Minneapolis Code of Ordinances § 244.40; Minneapolis Code of Ordinances § 244.810; Minneapolis Code of Ordinances § 244.820; Minneapolis Code of Ordinances § 244.2000; Minneapolis Code of Ordinances § 565.70 - statutes change; verify the current text for your situation.
Start with what our record of Minnesota law leaves open. It read Minn. Stat. ch. 504B, the landlord and tenant chapter, and found no deadline for telling a landlord that a new roommate has moved in.
Any notice period for adding someone is a term to look for in the lease.
What the chapter does write is a definition. Under § 504B.001, subd. 12, a residential tenant is "a person who is occupying a dwelling in a residential building under a lease or contract, whether oral or written", and the same sentence adds "all other regular occupants of that dwelling unit".
The second half is the roommate's half. The definition lists regular occupants as a category of their own, beside the person occupying under the lease. The chapter's tenant remedies, such as the rent escrow action in § 504B.385, are written for a residential tenant.
Names on the lease carry money in one setting. In a shared-metered residential building, § 504B.216, subd. 7(b) requires a tenant's apportioned water and sewer bill to be "allocated to each unit based on the number of tenants listed on the lease".
The share is measured "as a proportion of the occupancy of all the units as listed on the leases in the building."
That rule has a start date. Laws 2024, chapter 107, section 10 made the section effective January 1, 2025, "for leases entered into or renewed on or after that date." Adding a roommate's name to such a lease changes the count the bill is built on.
Several people on one lease meet one more rule. Under § 504B.206, subd. 3(b), one of several tenants may end the lease under the violence protection in subdivision 1.
When that happens, "any lease governing all remaining tenants is terminated at the later of the end of the month or the end of the rent interval in which one tenant terminates the lease".
The section then deals with the people left behind. All tenants owe rent for that full month, and "Any tenant whose tenancy was terminated under this paragraph may reapply to enter into a new lease with the landlord."
Our Minnesota record is about who counts, how a shared water bill is split and what happens to co-tenants after that exit. It does not reach whether a landlord may refuse a proposed roommate.
Read § 504B.001, § 504B.206 and § 504B.216 as they stand on the day you need them.
Minnesota Tenant Protections
The first point is where the answer sits. Our record of Minn. Stat. ch. 504B finds no deadline for telling a landlord about a new roommate, which leaves the notice and approval paragraph in your lease as the document that answers it.
The second is the definition. Under § 504B.001, subd. 12, a residential tenant includes a person occupying a dwelling under a lease or contract and all other regular occupants of that dwelling unit. The third is money.
In a shared-metered residential building, § 504B.216, subd. 7(b) allocates each unit's water and sewer bill by the number of tenants listed on the lease, for leases entered into or renewed on or after January 1, 2025. The fourth is the co-tenant rule.
Under § 504B.206, subd. 3(b), when one of several tenants ends the lease under the violence protection, the lease for all remaining tenants ends at the later of the end of the month or the end of the rent interval.
Any of them may reapply for a new lease. On the Minneapolis side, § 244.820(a) allows no more than one family per dwelling unit, and § 244.40 defines a family as an individual or two or more persons intending to live together as a single household for 30 days or more.
Section 244.810 requires 150 square feet of floor area for the first occupant, 70 more for the second and 100 for each additional occupant, and a sleeping room may hold no more than four persons. Read the current text of each section before relying on it.
What's Specific to Minneapolis
Figures are the state rule, or the stronger city ordinance where one exists. Verify the current law for your own situation before relying on it.
The Minneapolis Housing Maintenance Code starts from the household. Minneapolis Code of Ordinances § 244.820(a) provides that no dwelling unit shall be occupied by more than one family, and that "unrelated persons may occupy a dwelling unit when such occupancy is permitted and authorized".
The definition does much of the work. § 244.40 defines a family as "an individual or two (2) or more persons, intending upon residing and living together as a single household and housekeeping unit in a dwelling unit for thirty (30) days or more and not for short-term, tourist or transient use". The zoning code's definition in § 565.70 adopts it.
Read that definition for what it measures. The 30 days is part of describing a household that intends to live together, and our record of it carries no notice period and no deadline for telling anyone.
A group of unrelated adults has a named route. Under § 244.820(c), two or more unrelated adults may count as a family when operating as an intentional community. § 244.820(e) conditions that on a registration that includes a notarized statement of approval from the property owner.
Space is measured separately. § 244.810 requires "a minimum superficial floor area of not less than one hundred fifty (150) square feet for the first occupant". It adds 70 square feet for the second occupant and 100 for each additional occupant beyond two.
Bedrooms have their own minimums. A room used just for sleeping needs 70 square feet for one person, 90 for two and 50 more for each person beyond two, and "occupancy of a sleeping room shall not exceed four (4) persons." § 244.40 counts as an occupant "Any person over one (1) year of age".
Two duties sit with the owner. § 244.2000(2) requires every rental license holder to "Maintain a current register of all tenants and other persons with a lawful right of occupancy to a dwelling unit", kept current at all times and available to the director. Under § 244.820(b), the director of regulatory services may require the owner to post a card inside the unit "setting forth the maximum number of persons who may lawfully occupy such a dwelling unit".
On the notice question itself, our record read Chapter 244 and the zoning definitions in Chapter 565, and searched the whole code for roommate, roommates and co-tenant without a hit. It finds no Minneapolis deadline for telling a landlord about a new roommate.
The code read was codified through Ordinance No. 2026-020, adopted June 25, 2026, and none of the three adopted ordinances not yet codified amends a section cited here. Read § 244.810 and § 244.820 as they stand on the day you need them.
Our record of Minn. Stat. ch. 504B finds no deadline for telling a landlord about a new roommate, which leaves the lease as the place a deadline would be written.
In a shared-metered building, § 504B.216, subd. 7(b) splits the water and sewer bill by the number of tenants listed on the lease, so the names on it are the count the bill uses.
§ 244.810 requires 150 square feet for the first occupant, 70 more for the second and 100 for each additional occupant.
§ 244.810 says "occupancy of a sleeping room shall not exceed four (4) persons", and a room used for sleeping needs 90 square feet for two.
Sources
The law this guide relies on, and where to read it. Statutes change, so confirm the current text before you act on it.
- Minn. Stat. § 504B.001, subd. 12; Minn. Stat. § 504B.216, subd. 7; Minn. Stat. § 504B.206, subd. 3; Minneapolis Code of Ordinances § 244.40; Minneapolis Code of Ordinances § 244.810; Minneapolis Code of Ordinances § 244.820; Minneapolis Code of Ordinances § 244.2000; Minneapolis Code of Ordinances § 565.70, read on revisor.mn.gov. The Minnesota Revisor of Statutes prints this section in its 2025 Minnesota Statutes edition with a History line ending 2024 c 118 s 2-5, and its list of 2026 session laws affecting Chapter 504B does not include it.
Red Flags to Watch Out For
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A state reporting deadline nobody can cite
If you are told Minnesota law fixes a deadline for reporting a roommate, ask which section. Our record of Minn. Stat. ch. 504B finds no deadline for that notice.
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The 30 days treated as a grace period
The 30 days in § 244.40 is part of the definition of a family, a household intending to live together that long. It is not a window for telling the landlord.
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A fifth person in one bedroom
§ 244.810 caps a sleeping room at four persons, and counts as an occupant any person over one year of age under § 244.40.
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A shared house without the owner's statement
Unrelated adults counting as an intentional community under § 244.820(c) need a registration that includes a notarized statement of approval from the property owner.
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A co-tenant's exit nobody planned for
Under § 504B.206, subd. 3(b), one tenant's exit under the violence protection ends the lease for all remaining tenants, and all of them owe rent for that full month.
Your Rights as a Minneapolis Tenant
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Regular occupants are residential tenants
§ 504B.001, subd. 12 includes "all other regular occupants of that dwelling unit" in the chapter's definition of a residential tenant.
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A water bill split by the lease
In a shared-metered building, § 504B.216, subd. 7(b) allocates each unit's water and sewer bill by the number of tenants listed on the lease.
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A way back after a co-tenant's exit
Under § 504B.206, subd. 3(b), "Any tenant whose tenancy was terminated under this paragraph may reapply to enter into a new lease with the landlord."
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Floor area set by the city
§ 244.810 requires 150 square feet of floor area for the first occupant, 70 more for the second and 100 for each additional occupant.
What To Do - Step by Step
Read the occupancy and guest paragraphs
Find who may live there, whether approval is needed, and whether a notice period is stated. Our record of Minnesota law finds no deadline, which leaves those paragraphs as the text that answers it.
Count the household against the city's family rule
§ 244.820(a) allows one family per unit, and § 244.40 describes a family as a household intending to live together for 30 days or more.
Measure the unit and the bedroom
The unit needs 150 square feet for the first occupant, 70 more for the second and 100 per occupant after that. A sleeping room needs 70 for one and 90 for two.
Ask what the posted maximum says
Under § 244.820(b), the director of regulatory services may require the owner to post a card showing the maximum number of persons who may lawfully occupy the unit.
Put the request in writing
Email the landlord with the person's full name and planned move-in date. The license holder must keep a current register of tenants and other lawful occupants under § 244.2000(2).
Check the current text before relying on it
Read § 504B.001, § 504B.206 and § 504B.216 as they stand today, and § 244.810 and § 244.820 in the current Minneapolis code.