If 4 people are going to rent my house do I have to list all the?
Say you have Bob, Ted, Carol, and Alice on your lease. But you dont list Alice. Alice lives there 30 days; Alice is now your tenant, even though she is not listed on the lease. Alice is not subject to restrictions you place on the leasing contract, while Bob, Ted, and Carol are. Alice is only subject to local ordinances regarding tenants, which are the default for anyone renting without a lease. You have the following problems: The lease says its a non-smoking apartment; Alice smokes like a chimney but you cannot kick her out, because she never signed the lease, and shes not subject to the restrictions in the lease The lease says that pets are OK, if you pay a pet rent of $30/month; Alice keeps an 18 foot Burmese Python in her room but you cannot kick her out, because she never signed the lease, and shes not subject to the restrictions in the lease The lease says two small pets of no more than 30 pounds are allowed; Alice has two 260 pound St. Bernards but you cannot kick her out, because she never signed the lease, and shes not subject to the restrictions in the lease The lease said two pets; Alice gets two more St. Bernards but you cannot kick her out, because she never signed the lease, and shes not subject to the restrictions in the lease The lease says quiet hours are between 10PM and 10AM; Alice is a big fan of Rob Zombie and likes to play Dragula at full volume, every night, before she goes to sleep at 1AM but you cannot kick her out, because she never signed the lease, and shes not subject to the restrictions in the lease Alice is constantly 10 days late on her rent, but you cant charge her a late fee, as specified in the lease because she never signed the lease, and shes not subject to the restrictions in the lease It turns out you have a credit check requirement; Alice would never pass it but you cannot kick her out, because she never signed the lease, and shes not subject to the restrictions in the lease Bob, Ted, and Carol leave, since they decide they dont like Alice any more than you do; Alice decides shes not leaving, and you now get to put up with her for six months, and eventually you do the cash for keys thing to get her to leave because you cannot kick her out, because she never signed the lease, and shes not subject to the restrictions in the lease Alice takes your plumbing with her: sinks, toilets, traps under the sinks, shower head, bathtub faucet handles, everything she doesnt care, since she paid no security deposit because she never signed the lease, and shes not subject to the restrictions in the lease Etc. Do you get the picture? You want: All persons 18 years of age or older living at the place, to be on the lease You want everyone to be jointly liable You want everyone to follow the rules you laid out on the lease You want to be able to penalize them when they dont All of which are only possible, if you put every Alice on the lease If you do not do this, you are just asking for trouble.