A Flatmate Agreement is a legally binding document created between cohabitating people that establishes the expectations, responsibilities, and rules for the shared space. It only involves the cohabitating people, not the landlord of the residence.

A Flatmate Agreement allows people cohabitating to agree on house rules and expectations. By stating and agreeing upon expectations ahead of time, there is less chance for disagreements and misunderstandings. This clarification helps flatmates actively avoid future conflicts.

If you’re also in a Tenancy Agreement, you can highlight terms such as the length of the tenancy, rent amounts, utilities, and other household costs in your Flatmate Agreement. Alternatively, you can acknowledge the Tenancy Agreement and provide a copy to your flatmate so that they may refer to lease terms as needed.

A Flatmate Agreement is also known as:

• Roommate agreement
• Flatmate agreement form
• Flatmate contract

When you’re establishing your Flatmate Agreement rules, keep in mind that all flatmates involved must agree to the clauses in the document. Here are some ideas to consider including in your Flatmate Agreement:

• Private time and quiet hours: Is there a scheduled time of day when you do not wish for anyone to interrupt or disrupt you? Establishing private time can avoid unnecessary tension. Quiet hours let your flatmates know when it’s okay to make some noise and when they’ll disrupt other’s rest.
• Guests and significant others: You and your flatmate might have different interpretations of what’s acceptable in terms of guests. You might have a partner who spends a few nights a week at your place, while your flatmate is adamantly against overnight guests. Establish these boundaries ahead of time.
• Cleaning and chores: Because different people have different cleaning standards, it’s important to discuss expectations regarding chores. Decide who is responsible for shared spaces.
• Bathroom and kitchen schedules: Need to shower and be out of the house by a specific time? Or maybe you need an empty kitchen to prepare meals for the week every Sunday. These are details you can outline in a Flatmate Agreement.
• Thermostat expectations: We all have different preferences when it comes to the temperature of our homes. By noting thermostat expectations in a flatmate agreement, you can avoid future disagreements.
• Conflict resolution: Establishing a method for conflict resolution in advance can go a long way when disagreements arise. This way, there is a system in place to de-escalate conflict quickly.

Depending on your boundaries and preferences, you may need to describe your rules and expectations in detail. Communication avoids misunderstandings and conflict, but you should also make sure you’re not setting unrealistic expectations on your flatmates. Ultimately, all flatmates must agree to the document to make it valid.

No. A Tenancy Agreement is a contract between a landlord and a tenant that establishes a lease on residential space. This agreement allows a tenant to occupy that space for an established period of time for a rental fee. A Tenancy Agreement outlines things like the cost of rent, the rights and responsibilities of both parties, and the length of the lease.

A Flatmate Agreement is a contract between flatmates that doesn’t involve the landlord. It establishes agreed-upon rules and expectations between the residents that cohabitate a space together.

If you have a flatmate moving in and would like to create a flatmate lease, consider creating a Sublease Agreement Sublease Agreement in addition to a Flatmate Agreement. This document allows you to assign part of an existing lease to another tenant.

If there is a discrepancy between the flatmate agreement and the tenancy agreement, the tenancy agreement generally prevails. This is because the flatmate agreement governs the relationship between flatmates, but the tenancy agreement governs the property.

For example, if a flatmate agreement stated parties can only be held on weekend evenings, but the tenancy agreement states no parties can be held at all, the tenancy agreement supersedes the flatmate agreement and no parties can be held at all.

How do I write a Flatmate Agreement?

LawDepot’s Flatmate Agreement template allows you to create a legal document customised to your needs.

Details of the Residential Tenancy Agreement

Using our Flatmate Agreement template, select whether or not there is a written agreement (known as a lease agreement or tenancy agreement) with the landlord. State the address of the property.

If there is a written agreement with the landlord of the property, you’ll need to provide some details on the tenancy. State the date the tenancy started, the expected end date, and the landlord’s name.

Next, note the names of all the flatmates. You can add as many names as needed.

Select when you want the Flatmate Agreement to end. You can choose for it to end when the Tenancy Agreement ends, on a fixed end date (either a specific date or after a predetermined time has passed), or for it to renew automatically.

Rights and responsibilities for flatmates

Provide details regarding rent payments, such as how often the tenants pay rent. If you aren’t sure about this information, you can also say that the rent details are specified in the tenancy agreement. If you provided a damage deposit as part of your tenancy agreement, provide this information as well.

Next, you and your flatmates can outline the details regarding bill payments. Establish which utilities the rent includes and who’s responsible for them. Determine how you’ll handle household costs and expenses. You can choose to split costs equally, divide them in the same proportions as the rent payments, or decide not to specify this detail in the Flatmate Agreement.

House rules and expectations

Now you have the opportunity to establish house rules. Our template allows you to establish rules from the following categories:

• Smoking
• Alcohol
• Illegal activities
• Parties, gatherings, celebrations
• Quiet hours
• Guests
• Personal property
• Other

After establishing flat rules, you can establish obligations regarding duties and restrictions. The Flatmate Agreement form prompts you to select from the following options:

• Cleaning
• Pets
• Parking
• Living arrangements
• Damages
• Other

Finally, determine the grounds for termination. Decide whether one flatmate can terminate the agreement of another and under what circumstances. Determine what kind of notice (if any) the flatmate must provide before leaving the agreement. Some flatmates include policies requiring the leaving flatmate to supply a forwarding address and remove their property.

If you want to add any additional clauses, our template allows you to do so. Lastly, determine the signing details of the document. Now, you are ready to finalise and print your document.

A Flatmate Agreement doesn’t need to be notarized to be legally valid. When executed properly, LawDepot’s free Flatmate Agreement template creates a legally valid document.

Yes, a Flatmate Agreement is a legally binding document. If a flatmate refuses to comply with their obligations as noted within the document, the other flatmates involved in the agreement can take them to court. If your flatmate stops paying their portion of the rent, this document can reinforce your claims in court.

Keep in mind that some clauses in a Flatmate Agreement may be difficult to uphold in court. For example, if your flatmate throws a party without your permission, a court is unlikely to do much to enforce this house rule. However, if there is damage caused by that party, such as property damage or an overdose, then the matter might be worth pursuing. That being said, a carefully thought-out Flatmate Agreement is still valuable because it will prevent disputes from arising in the first place.