Nebraska Roommate Agreement
The Nebraska rules that shape the document: a fair housing exemption keyed to four sleeping rooms, no lodger law, and no statute on splitting a deposit or rent liability among roommates.
Find out where you stand in Nebraska
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Introduction
A roommate agreement is a contract between co-tenants who share a home. It is not a lease, and it does not bind the landlord or change the terms of the lease the tenants signed. In Nebraska, two things shape the document beyond the national template: the Nebraska Fair Housing Act exempts an owner-occupier from the Act's rental and tenant-selection rules when renting rooms within their own home, but only up to four sleeping rooms, a threshold set by room count rather than the unit count most states use; and Nebraska has no lodger statute and no statute letting one roommate remove another directly, so an unwanted roommate can only be removed by the landlord through a formal eviction. Several other questions, including whether landlord consent is required to add a roommate and whether roommates are jointly and severally liable for rent, are not addressed by any Nebraska statute, so the lease and this agreement are what actually govern them.
Key Things to Know
- 1
Nebraska's fair housing exemption for owner-occupiers is keyed to rooms, not units. An owner renting rooms within their own home is exempt from the Nebraska Fair Housing Act's rental and tenant-selection rules, but only up to four sleeping rooms (Neb. Rev. Stat. 20-322(3)). Rent a fifth room and the exemption is gone entirely.
- 2
Nebraska has no lodger law. No provision comparable to California's owner-occupier lodger statute exists, so there is no shortcut for removing a roommate. Only the landlord can remove an occupant, through the normal eviction process under the Nebraska Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act.
- 3
Nebraska has no statute giving a tenant an affirmative right to add a roommate, unlike New York's Roommate Law. Whether your lease requires the landlord's consent before adding a roommate is not settled by state statute, so check the lease itself rather than assuming a right either way.
- 4
Nebraska's protected-class list for fair housing (Neb. Rev. Stat. 20-318) is race, color, religion, national origin, disability, familial status, and sex, an exact match to the federal Fair Housing Act. Nebraska adds no protected classes of its own at the state level.
- 5
The room-rental exemption's text covers only the decision to refuse or change a roommate. It says nothing about advertising for one, and whether the Act's general ban on discriminatory advertising still reaches an exempt owner-occupier is unresolved. Avoid stating a preference for a protected characteristic in any posted ad.
- 6
Nebraska sets a security deposit cap of one month's rent, plus an optional pet deposit up to one-quarter month's rent, and requires the landlord to return or itemize it within 14 days (Neb. Rev. Stat. 76-1416). Nothing in that statute addresses splitting a shared deposit among roommates, so this agreement should.
- 7
No Nebraska statute sets a default rule on whether roommates are jointly and severally liable for rent. That is left to the lease and to this agreement, so state each roommate's payment share explicitly rather than assume Nebraska law fills the gap.
Key decisions before you file
Before you file a Roommate Agreement in Nebraska, 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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Nebraska Requirements for Roommate Agreement
Nebraska Agreement Does Not Bind the Landlord
State plainly that the roommate agreement is a contract between the roommates only, does not modify the lease, and does not obligate the landlord. Nebraska statute does not resolve whether landlord consent is required to add a roommate, so direct the parties to check the lease itself.
Nebraska Has No Lodger Law; Removal Requires Formal Eviction
Nebraska has no lodger statute and no mechanism for one roommate to remove another directly. State clearly that only the landlord, through a formal eviction under the Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act, can remove an occupant, and that self-help removal is not authorized.
Nebraska Has No Default Rule on Joint Rent Liability
No Nebraska 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 Nebraska default.
Nebraska Security Deposit Cap and Return Deadline
Neb. Rev. Stat. 76-1416 caps the security deposit at one month's rent plus an optional pet deposit of up to one-quarter month's rent, and requires return or itemization within 14 days. The statute does not divide a shared deposit among roommates, so the agreement should set out each roommate's share.
Nebraska Owner-Occupied Room Exemption for Roommate Selection
Neb. Rev. Stat. 20-322(3) exempts an owner who occupies the home and rents no more than four sleeping rooms within it from the Fair Housing Act's tenant-selection rules. The exemption ends at a fifth room, and its text does not address advertising, so pair any selection clause with a caution against discriminatory advertising.