Flatmate agreement: deposit, notice period and house rules

Rent agreement or flatmate agreement: what is the difference?

The owner deals only with the rent agreement. If all of you are named on it, the owner can usually ask any of you for the full rent, whatever your flatmate agreement says. If only one of you signed it, that person answers to the owner for the whole flat, so a written flatmate agreement matters even more for them.

Each person's share, and who pays the owner by when

Write down each person's monthly share in rupees, not just the method. If you have not agreed the split yet, see how to split rent fairly with flatmates. Then pick one of two ways to pay:

• Everyone pays the owner directly, by UPI, if the owner is happy with three or four payments. Each person keeps their own proof of payment.
• One person collects and pays the owner. Set an inside due date a few days before the owner's. If rent is due to the owner on the 5th, flatmates pay the collector by the 2nd, and the collector shares the owner's receipt in the group.

Agree what happens if someone is late: the others should not have to cover for them every month. A simple rule is that the late person tells the group before the inside due date and pays within a fixed number of days.

Recording each person's deposit

The owner holds one deposit for the whole flat, but each of you paid a part of it. Record who paid what, when and to whom. In the HSR Layout 3BHK from our rent split guide, the owner holds ₹2,40,000:

When a flatmate leaves mid-tenancy, the owner usually keeps the full deposit until the whole flat is handed back. So the incoming flatmate pays the outgoing one their share directly. If Meera leaves and Divya takes her room, Divya pays Meera ₹68,000, Meera confirms it in writing, and the group updates the record and tells the owner. Settle any damage to Meera's own room between the two of them at the handover.

Sharing deductions at the end of the tenancy

When the flat is handed back, the owner may deduct unpaid bills or the cost of damage from the deposit. Agree in advance who bears what: damage inside a bedroom is that person's, common areas are shared, and unpaid bills go to whoever owes them. Ordinary wear and tear should not be deducted at all; see wear and tear versus damage.

Say the HSR Layout owner deducts ₹15,000: ₹9,000 to fix a cracked kitchen tile and a broken hall fan regulator, and ₹6,000 for a damaged wardrobe door in Karthik's room. The ₹9,000 is shared equally, ₹3,000 each. The owner refunds ₹2,25,000, which the flatmates split as follows: Ananya ₹92,000 − ₹3,000 = ₹89,000, Karthik ₹80,000 − ₹3,000 − ₹6,000 = ₹71,000 and Meera ₹68,000 − ₹3,000 = ₹65,000. Check: ₹89,000 + ₹71,000 + ₹65,000 = ₹2,25,000.

Some flats share common-area deductions in the same ratio as the deposit instead. Either works if it is written down before anyone leaves. For the owner's side of the refund, see how to get your security deposit back.

Notice between flatmates

Agree how much notice a flatmate gives the others before leaving, often one month, and that it is given in writing in the group. The leaver pays their share until the notice ends or until a replacement the others have accepted moves in, whichever comes first.

For example, if Meera tells the group on 10 March with one month's notice, she pays her share until 9 April. If Divya moves into her room on 25 March, Meera pays only until 24 March. The prorated rent calculator works out a part-month share.

This is separate from the notice to the owner. If the whole group is leaving, the rent agreement decides; see the notice period for vacating a flat.

Who finds the replacement, and the owner's OK

1. 1

   The leaver starts the search

   It is their room and their notice, so they post it in office groups, society groups and listing sites first.

2. 2

   The others meet the person

   Everyone who stays should meet the newcomer and agree. Write down that anyone may say no for a fair reason.

3. 3

   The owner says yes

   Get the owner's approval in writing. The owner may want KYC documents and a tenant police verification, and may add the new name to the rent agreement with an addendum.

4. 4

   Hand over

   Settle the deposit share and any room damage between the leaver and the newcomer, hand over keys, and update the flatmate agreement.

House rules checklist

Most flatmate fights are not about rent. Talk these through on day one and write down what you agree:

• Guests and overnight stays: how many nights a month, and telling the group in advance.
• Cleaning rota: who cleans the kitchen, bathrooms and hall, and on which days. Who manages the maid, if you have one.
• Quiet hours: for example 11 pm to 7 am on weekdays, with calls and music in your own room.
• Cooking and groceries: a shared fund for staples like rice, oil and milk, or everyone buys their own. Who cleans up after oota (meals).
• Smoking and drinking: allowed inside, on the balcony only, or not at all. Check what the society allows.
• Pets: only with everyone's agreement and the owner's written OK.
• Bills: how electricity, Wi-Fi, gas and the cook are split, and who pays each by when.

Keep the agreement and the rules in one place everyone can see, such as a note pinned in the flat's WhatsApp group, with a signed copy on paper. Then nobody has to remember the lekka (the account), and a new flatmate can read it before moving in.

A sample flatmate agreement to copy

FLATMATE AGREEMENT

Flat: [flat number, building, area, Bengaluru]
Rent agreement with the owner: dated [date], owner [owner's name]
This agreement starts on: [date]

1. Flatmates and rent shares
[Name 1], [room]: ₹[amount] a month
[Name 2], [room]: ₹[amount] a month
[Name 3], [room]: ₹[amount] a month
Total: ₹[total rent] a month
Method used: [equal / by room size with __% shared / extra for a better room]

2. Paying the owner
Rent is due to the owner on the [day] of each month. [Each of us pays the owner directly / Each of us pays [collector's name] by the [day], and they pay the owner and share the receipt in the group.]

3. Deposit
The owner holds ₹[total deposit]. Our shares: [Name 1] ₹[amount], [Name 2] ₹[amount], [Name 3] ₹[amount].
If one of us leaves before the tenancy ends, the incoming flatmate pays the leaver's share to the leaver directly, and we update this record.

4. Deductions when we hand the flat back
Damage inside a bedroom is paid by that room's flatmate. Damage in shared areas is split [equally / in the ratio of our deposits]. Unpaid bills are paid by whoever owes them.

5. Notice between us
Anyone leaving gives the others [one month's] notice in writing in the group. They pay their share until the notice ends or until a replacement we have all accepted moves in, whichever is earlier.

6. Replacements
The leaver looks for a replacement. Everyone staying must agree to the newcomer, and the owner must approve in writing.

7. Bills
Electricity: [how split]. Wi-Fi: [how split]. Gas, maid and cook: [how split]. Paid by: [names and dates].

8. House rules
Guests: [rule]. Cleaning: [rota]. Quiet hours: [times]. Groceries: [rule]. Smoking and drinking: [rule]. Pets: [rule].

Signed:
[Name 1] ____________ Date: ______
[Name 2] ____________ Date: ______
[Name 3] ____________ Date: ______

Change it to suit your flat. It records what you agreed; it does not change the rent agreement with the owner.

Is there a legal limit on the deposit?

The Model Tenancy Act, 2021 says a security deposit for a home may not exceed two months' rent (PRS summary). It is a model law the Union Cabinet sent to states to adopt (PIB), so the cap applies only where a state has passed a law adopting it. Whether it applies to you depends on whether your state has adopted it.

For Karnataka, we found no official record of adoption as of November 2026: Karnataka is not on the 2022 list or the reported 2025 list, and the Karnataka Rent (Amendment) Bill, 2025 does not cap deposits. Some websites say otherwise without citing a Gazette notification. Bengaluru deposits are often much higher than elsewhere in India; see security deposit rules in Bangalore and the Model Tenancy Act guide.

For owners letting to flatmates

Sources and date checked

• PRS Legislative Research: Model Tenancy Act, 2021 summary
• PIB, 2 June 2021: Cabinet approves the Model Tenancy Act
• PIB, 25 July 2022: Rajya Sabha reply on states that adopted the Model Tenancy Act
• Free Press Journal: August 2025 Rajya Sabha reply on Model Tenancy Act states (news report)
• Karnataka Rent (Amendment) Bill, 2025 (PRS)

We last checked these on 4 November 2026. Laws change, so have a lawyer confirm the current position in your state before you rely on it.

Frequently asked questions