Louisiana Roommate Agreement
The Louisiana rules that shape the document: the civil-law default against solidary rent liability, the pro-sublease default, and the New Orleans fair housing overlay.
Find out where you stand in Louisiana
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Introduction
A roommate agreement is a private contract between co-tenants. It is not a lease, and it does not bind the landlord or change what the lease says. Louisiana is a civil-law state, and its rules run through the Civil Code rather than a landlord-tenant statute. Three things shape the document beyond the national template: Louisiana does not presume roommates who share a lease are jointly and severally liable for rent, so absent an express clause each roommate's default duty is only a proportional share (Civil Code art. 1796); a roommate added without being placed on the lease is, by Louisiana's default rule, a lawful sublessee unless the lease expressly forbids subletting (Civil Code art. 2713); and Louisiana's Open Housing Act adds two protected classes beyond federal law and separates who you may select from what you may advertise. Everything else, the rent split, chores, guests, and quiet hours, is covered by the national template.
Key Things to Know
- 1
Louisiana's civil-law default runs opposite to the common assumption: solidary (joint-and-several) liability for rent is never presumed among roommates who share a lease (Civil Code art. 1796). Absent an express solidarity clause in the lease, each roommate's default duty is only their own proportional, or virile, share of the rent, not the whole amount.
- 2
Louisiana's default rule on subletting is also the opposite of most states: a tenant may sublease to a roommate, or assign lease rights, unless the lease expressly forbids it (Civil Code art. 2713). Consent is the exception here, not the rule, so check the lease's own wording before assuming a roommate needs the landlord's sign-off.
- 3
No Louisiana statute gives an owner-occupier a lodger's-removal shortcut like California's, and none gives a tenant an affirmative right to add a roommate over the landlord's objection like New York's. Neither right exists here; the lease and ordinary eviction procedure control both questions.
- 4
No Louisiana statute addresses how roommates split a security deposit refund between themselves. The Lessee's Deposit Act (R.S. 9:3251) governs only the landlord-to-tenant deposit relationship, so apportioning it among departing and remaining roommates is left entirely to this agreement.
- 5
Removing an unwanted roommate in Louisiana has no self-help shortcut. The only confirmed mechanism is the ordinary track: written notice to vacate of at least five days, then a summary eviction proceeding in court if the occupant does not leave (Code Civ. Proc. art. 4701).
- 6
Louisiana's Open Housing Act protects two classes beyond the federal list, military status and natural, protective, or cultural hairstyle, and lets an owner-occupier of a home with four or fewer units select a roommate freely on any of the covered grounds, but that exemption does not cover the separate ban on discriminatory advertising (R.S. 51:2604(B); R.S. 51:2606).
- 7
Inside New Orleans, a local ordinance adds protected classes the state list does not include, sexual orientation, gender identification, marital status, and age, so a roommate selection that is exempt under state law can still be restricted by the city ordinance there.
Key decisions before you file
Before you file a Roommate Agreement in Louisiana, 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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Louisiana Requirements for Roommate Agreement
Louisiana Rent Liability Is Not Presumed Solidary
Louisiana's civil-law default holds that solidary (joint-and-several) obligations are never presumed (Civil Code art. 1796). Absent an express solidarity clause in the lease, each roommate's default duty toward the landlord is only a proportional, virile share of the rent. State each roommate's payment share explicitly rather than assuming a joint-and-several default.
Louisiana's Pro-Sublease Default for Adding a Roommate
Civil Code art. 2713 permits a lessee to sublease or assign lease rights unless the lease expressly forbids it, the opposite of the common-law consent-required default. Confirm the lease's own wording before assuming a roommate needs separate landlord consent to move in.
Louisiana Has No Lodger Law and No Self-Help Removal
No Louisiana statute lets one roommate remove another without process. The confirmed mechanism is written notice to vacate of at least five days followed by a summary eviction in court (Code Civ. Proc. art. 4701). The agreement should not suggest any self-help removal right between roommates.
Louisiana Security Deposit Split Between Roommates
No Louisiana statute addresses how departing roommates split a security deposit refund; the Lessee's Deposit Act (R.S. 9:3251) governs only the landlord-tenant relationship. State the split or reimbursement rule explicitly in the agreement.
Louisiana Roommate Selection and Advertising Are Decoupled
Louisiana's Open Housing Act adds military status and natural, protective, or cultural hairstyle to the federal protected-class list. An owner-occupier of a home with four or fewer units may select a roommate freely on these grounds (R.S. 51:2604(B)(2)), but that exemption does not cover the discriminatory-advertising ban in R.S. 51:2606(A)(3).
New Orleans Fair Housing Overlay for Roommate Selection
New Orleans Code of Ordinances Sec. 86-28 adds sexual orientation, gender identification, marital status, and age to the protected-class list beyond the state Open Housing Act. A selection exempt under state law is not automatically exempt from this local ordinance.