New Hampshire Roommate Agreement
The New Hampshire rules that shape the document: the owner-occupied shared facility law, landlord consent baked into occupant status, and the state's added fair housing classes.
Find out where you stand in New Hampshire
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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 New Hampshire, a handful of state rules sit on top of the national template: RSA chapter 540-B lets an owner who lives in the home and shares a kitchen, bathroom, or living area with an occupant end that arrangement without a formal eviction, New Hampshire's definitions of subtenant and implied tenant bake landlord consent directly into who may lawfully occupy a unit, and the state's fair housing law adds age, gender identity, and marital status as protected classes on a list that does not fully match its own advertising-discrimination ban. Everything else, the rent split, chores, guests, and quiet hours, is covered by the national template.
Key Things to Know
- 1
New Hampshire's shared facility law (RSA ch. 540-B) lets an owner who personally lives in the home and shares a kitchen, bathroom, dining area, or living area with an occupant end that occupant's stay without the formal RSA 540 eviction process, on 30 days' notice without cause, 7 days for nonpayment, or 72 hours for damage or unsafe behavior. This applies only when the person doing the removing is the owner living in the home. It does not apply between two roommates who both rent from an outside landlord.
- 2
Outside that narrow owner-occupied situation, an ordinary New Hampshire co-tenant cannot remove another roommate. Only the landlord can end a tenancy, and only through RSA 540's formal possessory-action process. Self-help removal, such as changing locks or removing belongings, is not authorized between roommates.
- 3
New Hampshire statute defines who may lawfully occupy a unit: a 'subtenant' needs the landlord's authorization to sublet, and an 'implied tenant' needs the knowledge and consent of both the lawful tenant and the landlord (RSA 540-A:1, II). Occupying without the landlord's permission is unlawful even if the other roommate agreed to it.
- 4
No New Hampshire statute gives a tenant an affirmative right to add a roommate over the landlord's objection, unlike New York's Roommate Law. The lease and the landlord's consent control whether a new roommate may move in.
- 5
No New Hampshire statute sets a default rule on whether roommates are jointly and severally liable for rent absent an agreement. The lease governs what the landlord can collect, and this agreement should state each roommate's payment share explicitly.
- 6
No New Hampshire statute addresses how departing roommates split a security deposit refund among themselves. RSA 540-A:7 governs only the landlord's return of the deposit to the tenant, so the split is left entirely to this agreement.
- 7
New Hampshire's fair housing law (RSA 354-A:10) adds age, gender identity, and marital status as protected classes beyond federal law, with exemptions for a room in an owner-occupied private home or a small building where the owner lives. Its separate advertising-discrimination ban covers a different list of traits, including sexual orientation, and applies even where the selection exemption does.
Key decisions before you file
Before you file a Roommate Agreement in New Hampshire, 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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New Hampshire Requirements for Roommate Agreement
New Hampshire Landlord Consent Baked Into Occupant Status
New Hampshire defines a lawful occupant as a subtenant with the landlord's authorization to sublet, or an implied tenant with the knowledge and consent of both the lawful tenant and the landlord (RSA 540-A:1, II). Occupying without landlord permission is unlawful regardless of the other roommate's consent (RSA 540-A:3, IX). The agreement should confirm that consent was obtained.
New Hampshire Ordinary Co-Tenancy Removal Requires Formal Eviction
Where neither roommate owns the home, only the landlord may remove an occupant, and only through RSA 540's formal possessory-action process. The agreement should not suggest any self-help removal right between roommates.
New Hampshire Owner-Occupied Shared Facility Removal (RSA ch. 540-B)
Where one roommate is the owner living in the home and sharing a kitchen, bathroom, dining, or living area with the other occupant, RSA ch. 540-B lets the owner end the arrangement on 30 days' notice without cause, 7 days for nonpayment, or 72 hours for damage or unsafe behavior, without the formal RSA 540 eviction process. This applies only in that owner-occupied scenario.
New Hampshire No Default Rule on Joint Rent Liability
No New Hampshire 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 New Hampshire default.
New Hampshire No Statutory Deposit-Apportionment Rule
RSA 540-A:7 governs only the landlord's return of the deposit to the tenant, with no rule for dividing it among roommates. The agreement should set out how a shared deposit is divided when a roommate moves out.
New Hampshire Fair Housing Added Classes and Advertising Split
New Hampshire's fair housing law (RSA 354-A:10) adds age, gender identity, and marital status as protected classes, with exemptions for a room in an owner-occupied home or a small building where the owner lives (RSA 354-A:15, II-III). The exemptions do not extend to the discriminatory-advertising ban, which runs on a different list of traits including sexual orientation.