Q For the Landlords Out There... Would This Annoy You?

As a landlord I would explain the situation and ask for a separate addendum. It is no big deal to make up an addendum to a lease, not for me anyway. I have tenants that asked to have someone else stay with them, they help my tenant with the rent. As long as the house/apartment is big enough for everyone then it shouldn't be a big deal.

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As a landlord I would explain the situation and ask for a separate addendum. It is no big deal to make up an addendum to a lease, not for me anyway. I have tenants that asked to have someone else stay with them, they help my tenant with the rent. As long as the house/apartment is big enough for everyone then it shouldn't be a big deal.

My husband and I own a rental property and if another adult was going to be living there, we wouldn't be "annoyed" but we would need to know about it. Depending on what your landlord says, they may require that all adults over 18 living on the property be listed on the lease. If any utilities are included in the rent, the more people are living there, the more that is used (heat, hot water, etc.). Sometimes they want to be able to do a credit check or background check on potential tenants. I would not worry so much about "annoying" the landlord as much as just being upfront and making them aware of what your wishes are. We would not be annoyed unless someone else was living there without our knowledge.

Now if we agree to let someone add somebody else to the lease, and that new person starts creating problems (noise, damage to the property, adopting a bunch of ferrets, etc.), you bet we are going to be annoyed.

The landlord needs to know who lives there, but I don't think she needs to be on the lease.
I would also suggest a 'timeline' for the duration of her stay, I know she's family and all and I don't mean to be disrespectful but she needs some motivation to find her own place. YOU and your HUSBAND need your own home. Believe me it will become a point of contention if left unsaid.

Not if you asked. There is plenty of room. If you snuck her in, I would give you 30 days notice.

Yes, ask! In Texas, everyone over 18 living there must be on the lease. I would not mind adding someone, but it's up to the landlord. Just explain what happened (just like you did here), and ask. Landlords are people too ;)

If you really want her to live with you be up front with your landlord(s). Simple tell them that another adult family member will be living with you, ask the landlord if they need any additional information (depending on the landlord or area every adult living in a rental needs to be "checked" out for safety reason or whatever). My dad is a landlord over a handful of places that I help out with and we do background checks on anyone over 18, we do have it written in the lease that NO ONE else can live in the place unless we know and approve them so I would tell your landlord.

I know you care about your sister-in-law but I would still have a written agreement on what you stated above, it seems that even the best of family will be torn apart if this stuff is not written down, agreed upon, and signed. She will babysit your daughter while you are at work or school in exchange for free rent, if you ask her to babysit for a date night you will pay her, If she gets a job she will pay rent, agree upon and put down rules about her having friends/boyfriend over (maybe she can not have overnight guests unless everyone agrees upon it), also give her a copy of the rules the landlord put in the lease (parking, noise rules, so on) just so she can not say 'I did not know' and that coulld start some big issues.

I would just be up front about it. You really need to let your landlord know she will be staying there. Not telling them could be considered breaking the lease.

I don't see you having this problem, but I offered to let someone stay with me for a bit, "until she found another place"....well, she wasn't even looking and wasn't paying me anything either. My rental agreement specifically said that if anyone would be staying over two weeks, it required permission of the landlord. My landlords adored me, but I basically told on myself because I needed their help getting the woman to move out. They sent a very formal letter stating that it had come to their attention that there was an undisclosed occupant and she had one week to leave or I would have to move.
It might sound mean, but she found another place and was gone in 3 days. I'm all for helping someone, but I almost wish I hadn't waited so long.

Definitely talk to your landlords.
Best wishes to you and your family.

Ditto everyone. Unless there are utilities provided, there shouldn't be any problem but I as a landlord would want to know.

Unless you are wanting her to start building references I would just count her as one of my family.

But, if she could use the good reference from a landlord when she finally does move out, pertaining to personality, neighbor activity (No loud complaints for noise or heavy traffic, etc...), volunteering if there are community functions, whatever she could do that would be a good reference for a future landlord or a job interview. Sometimes a reference from a business person who knows of us in that situation can have some credibility if they write a letter about us.

I would not even say anything about her unless asked.

One of the main reasons a landlord wants to know about a new person added to the household is to run a background check to make sure they are not a criminal.
It would not be a big deal to add your SIL. Just tell them the truth.
Good Luck and GOD BLESS
D.

Annoying? Not really. We would require her to be added to the lease as a tenant because she is an adult and even if a child at least indicated as living there. Our lease lists all people that will occupy, even the kids. I would not have a problem with her staying as long as no problems came up but she would have to be added as a tenant--even if only yourself and your husband were responsible for rent payment. If she came after and nothing was said about it and she stayed more than a couple weeks, you broke your end of the lease.

I think you should explain the situation clearly to your landlord - tell them that she is a family member, make it clear that she will be the only one being added, and that this isn't going to start a trickle of other family members coming to live there too. Also mention that she is very responsible, is a non-smoker and has no pets.

If it were my unit, I would require a credit check on her (to be sure she doesn't have a history of financially draining people/companies), even if she isn't going to be the one paying rent. In some cases, adding an adult to a lease may increase your rent, since having another adult on the premises causes more wear & tear to the unit and additional usage to the appliances. Hopefully you have a sympathetic landlord and they will let her move in without any difficulty.

Not at all. It's not that big of a deal to add a person to a lease. I'd rather be told about changes like that. Talk to the landlord and see how they want to handle it.