My roommate and I live in a student apartment in Texas. Due to special circumstances, he wants to sublease his half of the apartment to another student for about a month. We've signed separate leases for each unit. Due to extra fees, he doesn't want to report this to management. Could I be held liable if management finds out? How bad of an idea is this?
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What's your goal? To stop him from subleasing? To wet your beak in his deal? Or maybe just to make some troubles for him?– GreendrakeCommented May 12, 2021 at 6:14
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@Greendrake That seems needlessly hostile. It's clear OP wants none of those things- they want to avoid legal issues with their landlord.– Comic Sans SeraphimCommented May 12, 2021 at 12:58
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@Studoku I think it's obvious that, given separate leases, the OP is under no obligation to snitch on his flatmate. Conversely, it is not clear what "Could I be held liable if management finds out?" refers to. Liable for snitching? Or for not snitching? Hence my questions above. No hostility meant at all.– GreendrakeCommented May 12, 2021 at 13:41
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The only goal was to advise him to any issues that could arise and come to a joint consensus on our comfort level with this maneuver. Since there is shared apartment space, I didn't know to what degree I would be held responsible. I wouldn't want to put him in a compromising situation. I also don't want him to put me in a compromising situation. @Greendrake– Moss RichardsonCommented May 13, 2021 at 17:23
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1 Answer
Could I be held liable if management finds out?
You might, even if only on grounds of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing. The matter is otherwise hard to assess without knowing the terms of your lease.
Notwithstanding your mention of "separate leases for each unit", the lease might contain language providing joint-and-several liability which might or might not extend to damages the landlord could claim for the roommate's unauthorized sublease. Akin provisions would not be far-fetched. After all, your duty of good faith and fair dealing encompasses the common areas of that same apartment.
How bad of an idea is this?
Besides the previous point, your non-disclosure might forfeit some of your rights (i.e., pursuant to your lease) in the event that the sub-lessee's actions cause you a loss. That is because your omission deprived the landlord of the opportunity to address the risks associated to unknown sub-lessees.
