I'm sure this is all legitimate but I just thought I'd get some input.

My current roommate and I are looking for a place to live in the fall. His girlfriend is looking to move in with us so we can save some money and possibly get a nicer place. We found a townhouse that is 1300 square feet with plenty of room for the three of us but upon mentioning that three people were living there, they immediately told us we weren't allowed and were actually quite rude about it. One person per room unless they are married. This seemed kind of odd to me (long term bf/gf with a kid couldn't live there or a gay couple would run into the same problem).

I called another one of there locations (in SC) and they were absolutely fine with it and had never heard of the rule before. I'm at Auburn in Alabama so something like this doesn't surprise me but I was just curious if anyone had run into this before.

http://www.cbeech.com/auburn.htm

[Edited on January 7, 2010 at 9:07 PM. Reason : link]

1/7/2010 9:01:44 PM

sue

1/7/2010 9:06:24 PM

have you looked alabama's general statues for regulations on cohabitation? they might just be dicks about enforcing the policy in their properties...

1/7/2010 9:10:14 PM

^No, I haven't yet. I thought maybe I was way off base by thinking it was illegal. I'm going to start looking around.

1/7/2010 9:12:34 PM

so don't mention that 3 people are living there

1/7/2010 9:19:04 PM

^We need an extra parking spot and gym access. It's too late now anyways because they know us.

[Edited on January 7, 2010 at 9:39 PM. Reason : v agreed]

1/7/2010 9:21:41 PM

well, think of it this way, if they have that kind of attitude, they're probably not the kind of folks you wanna have to deal with on other issues

1/7/2010 9:32:53 PM

http://www.hud.gov/offices/fheo/FHLaws/yourrights.cfm

What Is Prohibited?
In the Sale and Rental of Housing: No one may take any of the following actions based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, familial status or handicap:

-Refuse to rent or sell housing
-Refuse to negotiate for housing
-Make housing unavailable
-Deny a dwelling
-Set different terms, conditions or privileges for sale or rental of a dwelling
-Provide different housing services or facilities
-Falsely deny that housing is available for inspection, sale, or rental
-For profit, persuade owners to sell or rent (blockbusting) or
-Deny anyone access to or membership in a facility or service (such as a multiple listing service) related to the sale or rental of housing.

1/7/2010 9:46:53 PM

haha dude, you dont tell them that she will be living there.

You and your friend just move in.

If they ever ask, just say she stays over a lot or something.

1/7/2010 10:20:32 PM

Don't be a bitch and sue.

Man up, respect their right to rent to whoever the hell they please (even if the government doesn't acknowledge that right), and be thankful you weren't under their thumb, as it's obvious you and the landlord would not mesh well.

If you sue to live there, 1) You're a pussy and 2) you'd be miserable anyway.

Move on and find another place to live.

1/7/2010 10:31:16 PM

I never implied I was going to sue. I was simply questioning the legality of the situation because it doesn't seem proper. There isn't really a landlord either, it's corporate.

1/7/2010 10:47:57 PM

maybe you should contact "corporate" and tell them

1/7/2010 10:49:02 PM

he wouldn't sue to live there he would sue for damages and still go live somewhere else.

Quote :

"You May File Suit: You may file suit, at your expense, in Federal District Court or State Court within two years of an alleged violation. If you cannot afford an attorney, the Court may appoint one for you. You may bring suit even after filing a complaint, if you have not signed a conciliation agreement and an Administrative Law Judge has not started a hearing. A court may award actual and punitive damages and attorney's fees and costs."

http://www.hud.gov/offices/fheo/FHLaws/yourrights.cfm

1/7/2010 10:49:55 PM

you can call the BBB

1/7/2010 10:52:46 PM

My roommate emailed corporate a week ago after he called and they didn't respond. I went in the office today to make sure he hadn't just caught a guy on a bad day and got the same story and poor treatment.

I guess a phone call would be the next step but I'm not sure it's worthwhile. I mean this was our best option and we had planned on coming back from break and signing a lease but I doubt they will budge on their policies.

[Edited on January 7, 2010 at 11:00 PM. Reason : ^yea my mom suggested calling the Better Business Bureau]

1/7/2010 10:59:29 PM

if they're being like this, my take is that it might be worthwhile to report them to equal housing (if they are indeed violating the law), but that I wouldn't want to live there if it took legal leverage to force my way through the door.

1/7/2010 11:02:26 PM

Looking at their site, I'm wondering if maybe they do individual leases. The rates are broke down per/person rather than for the entire unit. And everyone has their own full bathroom. There are a lot of "college" apartments that do this, so that wouldn't surprise me. And doing what you're saying wouldn't go along with their model. No idea if that is legal or not, but that's probably why they won't do it.

But yeah, just don't tell them and hope you don't get caught (it could be a violation of the lease). Is there not guest parking? And can 3 of you not get by with 2 gym access cards or whatever it is they give you? Maybe you just need to compromise.


i know this isn't really the topic of the thread, but is a 3 bedroom out of the question? The total rent goes from 1028 to 1212 (+62/person) and you get 700 more sq ft. That's a lot more space. I mean, you get an entire additional floor.

And the additional floor even has it's own living room area. Which you could all jointly use or you have whoever is down there pay more.

And if your friend and she break up, you can have someone move in and take her place. Otherwise, that's not really an option. I know people who have lived with their girlfriend and another roommate before, it can go really bad. However great you think their relationship may be at the moment.

And if you know someone else you'd be willing to live with, just say oh ok, we'll take a 3 bedroom then. And the 4 of you move in. If 1300sq ft is good enough for 3 of you, 2000 sq ft is probably more than comfortable for 4.

idk, just a thought.

1/7/2010 11:31:58 PM

We have thought about a three bedroom but at that extra price per month we can probably find something better. It would actually end up being about the same price for me since it would all be split equally. I was going to pay extra because they were sharing a room.

That is a good point about things going poorly and being able to rent out the other room. It's obviously something that I've thought about but as long as I was able to afford half the rent, I wasn't going to mention it.

They do both individual and joint leases. They charge an "activity fee" for each person living there are well as a monthly charge for an additional parking space. Those prices do say that they are per person BUT the guy said that a married couple can split that cost.

1/8/2010 12:03:12 AM

bad idea.

im just sayin...

1/8/2010 12:16:58 AM

I know I'm in Alabama (Near Birmingham) and the lease I will be signing tomorrow on a rental house has some sketchy wording about local ordinance or maybe even state law limiting the number of unrelated people who can occupy a dwelling.

Not sure what the deal is with all that, but my wife and I aren't concerned with it since it doesn't apply to us.

Found the lease online:

Quote :

"If any of the Tenants are unrelated parties, it is understood by the Tenants that occupation of subject property by two or more unrelated people may be a violation of the city or county zoning code. In the event that the city or county orders Landlord to cease and desist renting to unrelated parties, Landlord has the option to cancel this agreement with forty (40) days notice."

[Edited on January 8, 2010 at 12:31 AM. Reason : lease wording]

1/8/2010 12:28:55 AM

i thought everyone at auburn lived in trailer parks

1/8/2010 9:13:12 AM

Quote :

"if they're being like this, my take is that it might be worthwhile to report them to equal housing (if they are indeed violating the law), but that I wouldn't want to live there if it took legal leverage to force my way through the door."

Sounds about right. It's kind of a fucked up situation in that it seems to discriminate against cohabiting heterosexuals, any gay relationship, or even people that want to save money (as a sophomore I shared a room in an apartment with a friend to cut down on living costs, but of course we had separate beds). But it might not be the property management, it might be city or county ordinance. Unlikely IMO in a college town but possible, especially in the conservative Deep South.

1/8/2010 9:43:17 AM

do you live in fucking Nazi Germany or something?

1/8/2010 9:53:49 AM

I was in the exact same situation just a year ago, the manager of the office went as far as saying as it was against their HOA policy. I called BS and called their corporate office and the next day they had a complete change attitude. The only problem is that they can only provide one parking pass per room so 2 parking passes for a 2 bedroom and the third has to park in a visitor's spot. They try to pull this bullshit all the time, I recommend finding what company runs the complex and calling someone about it. That is, if you are dead set on living in that complex.

1/8/2010 10:07:48 AM

they may have a law there regarding number of unrelated individuals and rooms or something. They tried to pass an ordinance in Raleigh several years ago that would have limited the number of unrelated tenants in a household to like 2 (maybe it was 3, but it had a lot of opposition). Either way, it wouldn't come as a big surprise if they had a law similar to that in Alabama.

Check locally, or even just call a lawyer in the area and ask. That's something they'd probably just answer over the phone for you. And you can't really compare SC to there since it's different laws. And considering all the laws, I doubt one of their employees in SC is familiar with the laws in your area.

1/8/2010 10:07:53 AM