Tenant's (or roommate's) deposit in a private home - Colocation (single lease)

Verified 01 janvier 2022 - Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)

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  • Colocation
  • Single lease
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The colocation can take the form of a single lease (each of the roommates signs the same lease, which is common to all). In most cases, this single lease contains a solidarity clause (or an indivisibility clause on the rent debt) between the roommates. The presence of this clause impacts on bonds, who are indirectly in solidarity with each other. Exclusive rental of a home to a couple married or past It's not a roommate.

The guarantor is a person or body that undertakes in writing (by writing a guarantee) to pay the tenant's rental debts. These include:

  • rent, charges, any interest charged to the tenant for late payment of the lease debts
  • and the costs of rehabilitating the degraded housing.

By means of the solidarity clause (or the indivisibility of the rent debt), the guarantor is indirectly in solidarity with the other roommates. In the event of non-payment of the full amount due, the landlord can ask another of the roommates to be paid. If the roommate cannot pay for it on his own, the landlord can go back to his surety.

If the guarantor does not repay the rental debts, the personal property of the guarantor, his income and sound housing (if it belongs to him) can be seized at the request of the owner.

Please note

don't confuse me guarantor (person or body) and security deposit (sum of money).

The landlord is authorized to require the future tenant to have a deposit in return for the signing of the lease (lease). In practice, this is often the case.

However, there are cases where the owner is prohibited from applying for a security:

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The owner is an individual

A landlord who already has private insurance against rental risks can only apply for a deposit if their tenant is a student or apprentice.

The owner is a legal person (business, HLM organization...)

The landlord cannot ask for a deposit if the tenant is a student on a higher education scholarship.

The deposit may be:

  • either a natural person (parent, friend, etc.),
  • or a legal person (Action-Logement which distributes the Visal guarantee, company, bank...).

In order to be accepted, the guarantor must provide the landlord with a number of supporting documents proving that it has sufficient financial guarantees to pay any outstanding payments from the tenant.

The owner has the right to ask the guarantor for the following proof:

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Natural person (parent, friend...)

Proof of identity

The owner may require 1 valid ID among the following documents:

  • French or foreign identity card (with photo)
  • French or foreigners passport (with photo)
  • Foreigners or French driver's license (with photo)
Proof of domicile

The owner may require only 1 proof among the following documents:

  • Last rent receipt
  • Water, gas or electricity bill less than 3 months
  • Home insurance certificate of less than 3 months
  • Last notice of property tax or, if necessary, title to the principal residence
Proof of employment status

The owner may require 1 or more supporting documents among the following documents:

  • Employment or traineeship contract or, if necessary, a certificate from the employer specifying the employment and the proposed remuneration, the envisaged date of entry into service and, if necessary, the duration of the probationary period
  • Copy of the professional card (liberal profession)
  • Copy of the certificate of identification of theInsee: titleContent with identification numbers (self-employed)
  • Original D1 extract from the register of trades less than 3 months old (craftsman)
  • Extract K or Ka from the register of trade and businesses under 3 months of age (trade companies)
  • Any recent evidence of professional activity (other cases)
Resource Entitlement

The owner may require 1 or more documents among the following documents:

  • Last 3 salary slips
  • Last 2 balance sheets or, if necessary, certification of resources for the current financial year issued by an accounting officer (self-employed)
  • Proof of payment of allowances, pensions, pensions, social and family benefits and allowances received during the last 3 months or proof of entitlement established by the paying agency
  • Title to real estate or last notice of property tax
  • Justification of income from land, life annuities or income from securities and movable capital
  • Last Tax or Non-Tax Notice
    Where all or part of the income received has not been taxed in France, the last or penultimate equivalent document made by the tax authorities of the State or territory concerned must be provided.

FYI  

The guarantor may provide a copy of the original document. However, the owner has the right to demand the original. The document must be written or translated into French.

Legal person (Housing stock, bank, company...)

Housing action

When the future tenant has as security Housing action, Housing Action shall provide him with a Visa certifying that he is entitled to the Visal guarantee. This is the Visa that the future tenant must provide to the owner of the accommodation.

Bank, company...

The owner may require the following 2 documents :

  • Original K bis extract of less than 3 months from the company or the statutes or any other document justifying the legal existence of the legal person, mentioning the name of the person responsible and the address of the body as well as proof that a declaration has been made to an administration, a court or a professional body
  • Proof of identity of the representative of the legal person appearing on the extract Ka or the statutes

FYI  

The guarantor may provide a copy of the original document. However, the owner has the right to demand the original.

Shape

The guarantor must be in the form of a written document and be effected by privately signed document or by authentic instrument.

The landlord must provide the surety with a copy of the surety bond, unless the surety bond is included in the lease.

Content

  • The bond must identify the roommate whose notice (leave) will terminate the guarantor's commitment.
  • The deposit must also indicate the amount of the rent (written in full and in figures) and the conditions of revision of the rent.
  • The guarantee document must contain the following information:
    I acknowledge having read the penultimate paragraph of Article 22(1) of the Law of 6 July 1989:
    ‘Where the security for obligations resulting from a lease concluded under this Title does not contain any indication of the duration or where the duration of the security is stipulated indefinitely, the guarantor may unilaterally cancel it. Termination shall take effect at the end of the lease, whether the original lease or a renewed or renewed lease in which the lessor receives notification of termination.’;
    I also acknowledge that I have read Article 2297 of the Civil Code, according to which:
    If I am deprived of the benefits of discussion or division, I acknowledge that I cannot demand [Name and surname of the lessor] that he first pursue the [Name and first name of the tenant] or that he divides his lawsuit between the surety. If I do not do so, I retain the right to use these benefits.
  • The surety must sign the guarantee.

End of lease

The solidarity of the roommates ends when the lease expires. The solidarity of sureties shall cease under the same conditions.

Roommate's departure

For a lease signed after March 26, 2014, the solidarity of the roommate who gives leave ends:

  • If a new tenant replaces it in the lease, at the end of the notice
  • If not replaced, 6 months after the end of the period of notice

The solidarity of the person who has taken the security for this departing roommate ceases under the same conditions.

Warning  

for a lease signed before 27 March 2014, other specific provisions apply.

Termination of guarantor's undertaking

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Surety bond

The guarantor may terminate his employment at any time by registered letter with notice of receipt.

However, the termination served on the owner shall not take effect until the expiry of the lease.

In practice, the guarantor who cancels his commitment therefore remains obliged to meet the rental debts until the end of the lease.

Fixed-term guarantee

The guarantor may not terminate his undertaking. It is obliged to meet the rental debts up to the date originally scheduled.

However, the parties may provide in writing that certain events will terminate the guarantee (e.g. divorce of the spouses, death of the tenant).

In the event of the death of the guarantor, if nothing is indicated in the deed, his undertaking is automatically transmitted to his heirs. Heirs are liable for debts that were already incurred at the time of death, but not for debts that arose after death.

Who can help me?

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