Can I lease a room in my condo to a friend if the condo rules state that it can only be rented to a "single family"? They go on to define a "single family", Is this discrimination?
by 
Jonesy
ANSWERS: 6
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'Single family' is a common real estate term. It is defined in your lease. Even if it is discriminatory, you agreed to it by signing the lease. Most landlords aren't going to care if you have a roommate.
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Yikes...a bit hard to say without reading your agreement. Some of these deals can be awfully nasty. It seems to me that there MIGHT BE some wiggle room. The INTENT of the agreement is also part of the deal. I would assume that the intent is to keep condo owners from turning their homes into "single room/multi rentals." This is NOT what you wish to do. What if this were a romantic situation? Are they implying that you would not be allowed to have a significant other move in with you...unless you were married? It may be that the actual agreement contains language and "rules" that are contrary to your STATE LAWS. And while YES...you are responsible for reading and understanding your agreement BEFORE you would purchase and sign it...I don't believe that a HOA or Condo association can necessarily uphold "rules" that would run contrary to a pre-existing State Law. I say contact the fair housing or other local agencies and do some more homework. Sure doesn't sound fair to me!
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A friend is not family. If your lease forbids this, its not discrimination. Its the condo owners business to make a profit from rental, not yours.
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I am having a similar problem. My two friends and I were turned away from renting a 3BR condo because of their "by laws" of only allowing single families or blood related family. Is there such a thing as discriminating aganist young professionals?
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I'm struggling with the same issue. Would a cousin be a "blood relative"? Couldn't I just say my friend is my cousin and get his parking sticker from them? lol I would like him to sign a lease after the first couple months, but would be willing to forego the lease if that would make things difficult with the HOA. Would like to play by the rules, but kind of skirt them. <grin>
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No - what you want to do is exactly what those rules are trying to prevent. It is not discrimination, as defined in law, provided it applies to all families (including gay couples with children), all races, all religions etc. What they want is to keep it to groups likely to act as a single unit. So there is either a head of family, or a couple who work together, who take responsibility for themselves and the children. But if you rent to a friend, you can deny responsibility for him/her as an adult in a way you could not if they were a child, and vice versa. There are all sorts of problems that can result when you have people who are not in a parent/child or a partnership relationship. They can still occure with families, but are far, far less likely.
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