california rental-property residential-lease fair-housing-acts
Can I sublet my apartment for the full lease amount and then live there effectively for free?
<p>If I'm leasing a 2 bedroom apartment, can I sublet for the full amount of the lease, then live in the other room for free? Can the person I'm subletting to have a legal right to kick me out, even though I'm technically still on the lease?</p>

<p>For California, <a href="http://www.dca.ca.gov/publications/landlordbook/living-in.shtml" rel="nofollow">this</a> may be a useful guide. I assume the terms of the lease allow you to sublet (though I would be surprised if many leases actually allow it, without landlord approval). You would then have a sublease agreement with the subtenant (since you are still bound by the original lease and you want to be sure that you get the money so you can pay the landlord). You could then include a clause that allows you to keep one room, for free, if the person would actually agree to this arrangement. Unless you actually <em>assign</em> the lease, you are on the hook for the duration of the original lease, so they cannot kick you out.</p>
