I am in this situation where I am listed on the lease as an occupant to an apartment and my roommate is listed as a lessee. The exact wording on the form I signed is "I have been informed, understand and agree that I am being listed as an occupant not a lessee on the lease, for the above mentioned apartment"
Beneath which my roommate signed was:
"I have been informed, understand, and agree that I am the Lessee on the lease for the above mentioned apartment and therefore accept full and complete responsibility for above apartment and above mentioned occupants.
Before moving in I was told by the leasing office that the only difference between occupant / lessee is that I will have to pay her rent, not the apartment complex directly, and that they cannot legally sue me for rent. This is in MA. I have here for six weeks.
Today, my roommate and I got into an argument about having someone moving into the living room. She wants this person to move in and I made clear I would not agree to this. Her response was that I need to move out, and stated that since she is a lessee and I am an occupant she has this authority.
Does anyone know if she can do this?
Evicting a roommate in Massachusetts
As I have written about in other posts on this forum, I believe Massachusetts law requires that roommates be evicted with a notice to quit. In other words, you and your roommate are in a form of landlord tenant relationship. She is your landlord, and you have rights as a tenant. Unless you have some form of sub-lease agreement with her, you are the equivalent of a tenant at will, and she can evict you with a 30 day notice to quit (or a 14 day notice to quit if you fail to pay the rent).