Starting a "Group House" (Rent by the Room) Questions

[Ron Gallagher]

Hi all,

I am buying a massive 4 level row house in Washington DC and I will live in the basement apartment unit and rent out the six bedrooms available on the three upper floors. 

My questions are--

1) Do you have the tenants sign a lease or just a roommate agreement with the house rules? I recently spoke to a friend who runs a group house and she said she doesn't have any leases with her current tenants. Does anyone have a copy of the lease/rental agreement they use for a group house they could send me?

2) Do you still ask for pay stubs and proof of employment when you are renting a room month to month? Do you still run a credit and background check as well?

3) I assume you still collect one month's security deposit from each tenant. How do you handle damage to the common areas since if someone breaks the dishwasher for example they probably won't admit to it?

4) I got an overwhelming response to the rooms for rent postings I did on Facebook and Craigslist last night, what is a fair and efficent way to deal with the dozens of responses?  Discard anyone who has pets and doesn't have a job (some people noted they are just moving to DC to start their new job or to look for a job)? Are their any qualities you would favor and select on?  For instance, since one level has 4 bedrooms sharing one bathroom maybe a guy would be more tolarant of sharing a bathroom with 3 other guys then 4 girls trying to share a bathroom. I was thinking of adding some questions to the rental application like - What times do you usually work and what times will you be home? Then I can pick people on different schedules so the bathroom shower won't be occupied at the same time. Then I can pick a few 9 to 5ers and a bartender and a waiter, etc... who will be working different schedules.

5) Bonus question- I see on roommate listings online "Females Only" quite often. I did a little research and I was surprised to learn that you can legally discriminate when looking for a roommate and that fair housing laws don't apply.  I am technically looking for 6 roommates so while I don't plan on discriminating on any other factor than their ability to pay rent and maybe a person's work schedule, I am curious if fair housing laws apply to me in this situation? 

Thanks in advance for any advise!

Ron