- Getting a guarantor for a shared house or HMO tenancy starts with checking whether you're on a joint tenancy or a room-only agreement, because that decides exactly what your guarantor is agreeing to cover.
- You can usually get a guarantor either by asking someone who meets your landlord's criteria, or by using a professional guarantor service if you don't have anyone to ask.
- If you don't have someone in the UK who can act as your guarantor, Rentmigo can guarantee your own share of the rent, even if you're renting one room within a bigger shared house.
Shared houses bring an extra layer of complexity that a one-bed flat doesn't.
There's more than one tenant, sometimes more than one tenancy agreement, and often more than one guarantor conversation happening at the same time.
If you've been asked for a guarantor for a room in a shared house or HMO and you're not sure where to start, here's how to work through it.
And, if you don't have anyone in the UK to act as a guarantor for you, Rentmigo can help. Simply sign up to get started.
What does a guarantor for a shared house or HMO actually agree to?
That depends on the type of tenancy you're signing, not just the fact that you're sharing a house.
A shared house usually counts as an HMO, a House in Multiple Occupation, once three or more tenants from different households live there and share a kitchen or bathroom.
That label is really about licensing rules for the landlord. It doesn't automatically mean you need a guarantor, though many HMO landlords ask for one simply because shared houses tend to see tenants come and go more often than a single-let flat.
If you and your housemates sign one joint tenancy agreement, you're normally each responsible for the whole rent, not just your own portion. In practice, that can mean your guarantor is asked to cover the full rent too, not only your share, because the agreement makes tenants jointly liable for it.
Whether that applies depends on how the tenancy is written, so it's worth reading it rather than assuming.
If, instead, you each sign a separate agreement for your own room, known as a room-only or individual tenancy, liability is normally limited to what you owe for your room. Your guarantor's commitment stays tied to your rent alone.
Whether you need a guarantor at all, and what kind, comes down to what your landlord or letting agent asks for, not a rule that applies to every tenancy in the UK.
Step 1: Work out whether you're on a joint tenancy or a separate room agreement
Check the paperwork before you ask anyone to be your guarantor. Look at whether the agreement names all housemates together on one document, or whether you have your own tenancy just for your room.
If you're unsure, ask the landlord or letting agent directly. It's a fair question, and the answer changes what you'll need to explain to a potential guarantor later.
Step 2: Ask your landlord or letting agent exactly what they'll accept
Not every HMO landlord accepts the same guarantor options, so it's worth asking before you approach anyone. Useful questions include:
- Do you accept a professional guarantor company, or only a personal guarantor?
- If I use a professional guarantor service, does it need to cover the whole tenancy or just my share of the rent?
- Does the guarantor need to own a property in the UK?
- Is there a minimum income or credit check the guarantor needs to pass?
Getting these answers early saves you asking someone to commit to something the landlord won't actually accept. Our guide on whether professional guarantors are accepted by all landlords goes through this in more detail.
Step 3: Ask a personal guarantor who fits the criteria, if you have one
Most landlords want a guarantor who lives in the UK, is over 18, has a stable income and a reasonably clean credit history. Some also ask that they own their own home, though this isn't universal.
This is often where things get difficult for students, people who've recently moved to the UK, or anyone whose family lives overseas. A parent or relative abroad usually won't meet a UK landlord's checks, even if they're financially able to support you. If that's your situation, our guides on who can legally be a guarantor in the UK and whether parents overseas can act as a guarantor for UK rent explain why, and what to do instead.
Step 4: Be upfront with them about what they're agreeing to
Before anyone signs anything, explain what kind of tenancy it is and what they could be liable for. If it's a joint tenancy, tell them clearly that they could be asked to cover the whole rent, not just your share, if a housemate doesn't pay.
This matters more in a shared house than a single-let flat, because your guarantor is trusting people they've probably never met to pay rent on time too. Get the guarantor agreement in writing, and make sure everyone involved reads it before signing, rather than relying on a verbal understanding.
Step 5: Use a professional guarantor service if you don't have someone suitable
If you don't have anyone who can meet the criteria, or you'd rather not ask a family member to take on that kind of risk, a professional guarantor service is the usual alternative.
Rentmigo works by reviewing your application online, and if you're approved, we act as your guarantor instead of a friend or relative. Two things matter specifically for shared houses and HMOs:
- Rentmigo guarantees your own share of the rent, not the whole tenancy, so you're not asking us to take on responsibility for housemates you've never met.
- Rentmigo works with individual room agreements as well as full tenancies, so renting a single room in an HMO doesn't rule this option out.
Most applications take around 5 to 10 minutes to complete. You can read more about how a rent guarantor service works if you want the full process.
Check your eligibility with Rentmigo
Does everyone in a shared house need their own guarantor?
Usually, yes. Each named tenant needs to pass the landlord's referencing on their own, which normally means their own guarantor if they can't pass the checks another way.
If you're all on one joint tenancy, a landlord could in theory accept fewer guarantors covering the whole group, but that's down to what they're willing to agree, not a standard rule.
If you're each on a separate room agreement, your guarantor situation is entirely your own and has nothing to do with what your housemates arrange.
This is one advantage of a service that guarantees your share specifically. If one housemate has a family member willing to cover the whole tenancy and you don't, you don't need to match that. You can cover your own portion through Rentmigo without depending on what anyone else in the house has sorted out.
Do the new rent-in-advance rules change your options?
Yes, for new tenancies in England, paying several months upfront instead of using a guarantor generally isn't an option anymore. Since 1 May 2026, under the Renters' Rights Act, landlords can no longer ask new tenants for more than one month's rent in advance.
Before this, some tenants without a guarantor got around the problem by offering to pay three, six or even twelve months upfront.
That route is now closed for new tenancies, which makes sorting a guarantor, personal or professional, a bigger part of moving into a shared house or HMO than it used to be. Our guide on why more landlords are asking for a guarantor in 2026 covers this shift in more detail.
Getting your guarantor sorted before you move in
The earlier you work out whether your tenancy is joint or individual, and what your landlord will actually accept, the less last-minute scrambling you'll do once you've found a room you want.
If you have a family member or friend who fits the criteria and is happy to take on the risk, that's often the quickest route. If you don't, or you'd rather keep it separate from personal relationships, Rentmigo can guarantee your own share of the rent, whether you're on a joint tenancy or renting a single room in an HMO.
