Kentucky Roommate Agreement
The Kentucky rules that shape the document: the 2025 occupant-removal law that cannot be used against a roommate, the local-option deposit statute, and the Louisville overlay.
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Introduction
A roommate agreement is a private contract between co-tenants, not a lease, and it does not bind the landlord or change what the lease says. In Kentucky, a handful of state rules sit on top of the national template: a 2025 fast-track occupant-removal statute looks like it could remove an unwanted roommate but by its own terms cannot be used against one, no statute sets a default for splitting a security deposit or for joint-and-several rent liability among roommates, and Louisville Metro's local ordinance adds protected classes the state fair housing law does not recognize. Everything else, the rent split, chores, guests, and quiet hours, is covered by the national template.
Key Things to Know
- 1
Kentucky's 2025 occupant-removal statute (KRS 383.290, effective June 27, 2025) looks like it could fast-track the removal of an unwanted roommate, but subsection (9) expressly bars its use against anyone who is a current or former tenant, or who ever had an agreement permitting them to occupy the property, which covers essentially every invited roommate. Removal still requires the ordinary forcible detainer process.
- 2
Kentucky has no lodger statute like California's. There is no lighter-weight procedure for removing one roommate from a shared home; a roommate who will not leave can only be removed through a formal eviction, which historically runs through the landlord.
- 3
No Kentucky statute sets whether an added roommate is a co-tenant on the lease or a subtenant of the original tenant. That status depends on the paperwork with the landlord, not on this agreement, and it decides who can act against whom.
- 4
No Kentucky statute sets a default rule on joint-and-several rent liability among roommates. The lease controls what the landlord can collect from each tenant, so this agreement should state each roommate's payment share explicitly rather than assume Kentucky law fills the gap.
- 5
Kentucky's only security deposit statute, KRS 383.580, is part of the Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act, which is local-option under KRS 383.500 and applies only in the roughly 19 Kentucky cities and counties that adopted it. Even there, it governs the landlord-tenant relationship only and never reaches how roommates split a refund.
- 6
Kentucky's fair housing exemption (KRS 344.365) is narrower than the federal Mrs. Murphy rule in building size, capping at two-family buildings rather than four, but broader in scope for a single rented room in an owner- or family-occupied home: the exemption text voids the entire discrimination section for that room, including the ban on discriminatory advertising.
- 7
Louisville/Jefferson County Metro Code Section 92.03(A) adds gender identity, sexual orientation, lawful source of income, conviction history, arrest history, prior military service, and homeless status as protected classes in housing, none of which state law (KRS 344.360) recognizes. This changes the roommate-selection answer only inside Louisville/Jefferson County.
Key decisions before you file
Before you file a Roommate Agreement in Kentucky, a few decisions shape the document: which option to choose and what each one means. The Roommate Agreement guide walks through them.
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Kentucky Requirements for Roommate Agreement
KRS 383.290, effective June 27, 2025, permits fast removal of an unauthorized occupant, but subsection (9) bars its use against anyone who is a current or former tenant or who ever had an agreement permitting occupancy. An invited roommate is excluded, so removal still requires a formal forcible detainer action under KRS 383.200 et seq.
No Kentucky statute sets a default classification for a roommate added to an existing tenancy. Whether the roommate is a co-tenant or a subtenant of the original tenant turns on the paperwork with the landlord, not the roommate agreement.
No Kentucky statute sets a default rule on joint-and-several liability for rent among roommates. Draft the payment clause to state each roommate's share explicitly rather than relying on an assumed Kentucky default; the lease governs what the landlord can collect.
KRS 383.580 applies only in the roughly 19 Kentucky cities and counties that adopted the Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act under KRS 383.500, and even there governs only landlord-to-tenant deposit handling. State the roommate deposit split explicitly since no statute provides one.
KRS 344.365 exempts owner-occupied buildings of two families or fewer and single-room rentals in an owner- or family-occupied home, with the room-rental exemption text applying to the entire discrimination section, including the advertising rule, unlike the federal Mrs. Murphy exemption.
Louisville/Jefferson County Metro Code Section 92.03(A) adds gender identity, sexual orientation, lawful source of income, conviction history, arrest history, prior military service, and homeless status as protected classes in housing, none of which Kentucky's statewide fair housing law recognizes. This overlay applies only within Louisville/Jefferson County.
Frequently Asked Questions
The lease is between the tenants and the landlord. A Kentucky roommate agreement is a separate contract between the co-tenants themselves, covering rent splits, chores, guests, and issues Kentucky's landlord-tenant statutes do not address, like splitting a security deposit or how roommates handle an unwanted occupant.
No. A Kentucky roommate agreement does not bind the landlord and cannot change the lease. It is a private contract between the co-tenants. Whether a new roommate may move in, or whether the landlord's consent is needed, is governed by the lease, not this agreement.
No. Kentucky has no lodger statute and no lighter-weight removal procedure for co-occupants. Kentucky's 2025 occupant-removal law, KRS 383.290, cannot be used against a roommate because it explicitly excludes anyone who ever had permission to occupy the property. Removal still requires the landlord to file a formal forcible detainer action.
No. KRS 383.290, effective June 27, 2025, lets an owner seek fast removal of an unauthorized person, but subsection (9) says the procedure does not apply to, and cannot be enforced against, anyone who is a current or former tenant or who once had an agreement permitting occupancy. An invited roommate falls squarely within that exclusion, so a formal eviction is still required.
It depends on the paperwork with the landlord, not on the roommate agreement. No Kentucky statute sets a default. A roommate named on the rental agreement with the landlord is generally treated as a co-tenant; a roommate who only has an arrangement with the original tenant is more likely a subtenant. Check the lease to know which applies.
Kentucky has no statute setting a default rule on this. Whether roommates owe the full rent to the landlord if one does not pay depends on the lease itself. Because Kentucky law does not fill this gap, the roommate agreement should state each person's payment share and responsibility explicitly.
In most of Kentucky, no statute addresses this at all. Kentucky's deposit statute, KRS 383.580, is part of the Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act, which only applies in the roughly 19 cities and counties that adopted it, and even there it governs the landlord's handling of the deposit, not how roommates divide a refund. Put the split in the roommate agreement.
Kentucky's fair housing law (KRS 344.360) bars discrimination on race, color, religion, sex, familial status, disability, or national origin. KRS 344.365 exempts owner-occupied buildings of two families or fewer, and renting a single room where the owner or a family member also resides; for that room rental, the exemption text voids the entire discrimination section, including the ban on discriminatory advertising.
Yes. Louisville/Jefferson County Metro Code Section 92.03(A) adds protected classes state law does not recognize: gender identity, sexual orientation, lawful source of income, conviction history, arrest history, prior military service, and homeless status. A roommate selection that is lawful elsewhere in Kentucky may not be lawful inside Louisville/Jefferson County.