Sober living house rules and the resident agreement

The three tests: fair, enforceable, legal

Test	What it means in practice
Fair	The same rule, the same way, for every resident; a written invitation to ask for a reasonable accommodation if a disability makes a rule hard to follow; a way to raise a concern without retaliation.
Enforceable	Each rule describes something the house manager can see or check ("in by 10:00 PM," not "be responsible"); consequences are written in steps; every warning and decision is written in the house log; every resident signs that they received the rules.
Legal	No rule that singles out a group the Fair Housing Act protects; no removal without the process your state requires; no money or perks tied to where residents get treatment (EKRA, 18 U.S.C. 220); results and records kept private.

The NARR standard that certifiers use also expects residents' rights, resident input into how the house runs and a grievance process (NARR Standard 3.0), so rules written this way are also rules that pass certification. In Texas, see our TROHN certification guide.

Which document says what

Keep the house rules short enough to remember and post. Put the money, consents and legal terms in the resident agreement, and the step-by-step procedures in policies the house manager follows.

Document	What goes in it	Who signs
House rules	Sobriety, testing, curfew, chores, guests, meetings, medications, safety, respect, fees, consequences	Resident and house manager, at move-in and when rules change
Resident agreement	Fees and deposit, what's included, consent to testing, relapse and move-out, belongings, emergency contact, naloxone, fair housing, concerns	Resident and the owner or manager, at move-in
Drug screening policy	Frequency, collection, observed collection, confirmation, results, privacy	Adopted by the owner; staff trained on it
Relapse and safe discharge policy	Safety steps, options, the safe-transition plan, belongings, readmission	Adopted by the owner; staff trained on it

The rules, topic by topic

Sobriety

Say exactly what counts: no alcohol, illegal drugs or paraphernalia in the house, on the property or in a car on the property; no use of alcohol or non-prescribed drugs anywhere while living there, including products used to get high (kratom, synthetics) and alcohol-based products taken by mouth; coming home under the influence counts as use.

Drug and alcohol testing

Residents agree to random tests and tests when use is suspected; a refusal, or a diluted or tampered sample, counts as a positive; residents list every medication so results are read correctly. A typical schedule is at least weekly on random days for the first 30 days, then a set number of random tests a month, plus tests after a night away or a hospital stay. Collection, observed collection, confirmation and privacy belong in a written policy; our sober living drug testing policy guide covers each.

Curfew

A curfew that loosens with time in the house rewards progress and is easy to enforce. Example (set your own):

Stage	Sunday–Thursday	Friday–Saturday	Overnight passes
First 30 days	10:00 PM	11:00 PM	Not yet
Days 31–90	11:00 PM	Midnight	With the house manager's approval, a set number a month
After 90 days	Midnight	1:00 AM	With approval

Add: if work or treatment keeps a resident out past curfew, they tell the house manager ahead of time. Night-shift workers get a written exception, not a warning.

Chores and the house

One assigned chore a week on a posted chart the house manager checks; kitchen and common areas cleaned right after use; rooms checked weekly; repairs and safety problems reported the day they're seen.

Guests

Visitors welcome in common areas during set hours, and sober; no visitors in bedrooms and no overnight guests; residents are responsible for their guests' behavior.

Recovery activities

A set number of recovery meetings or activities a week, on the path the resident chooses (12-step, SMART Recovery, faith-based or another); the weekly house meeting; work, school, volunteering or treatment for a set number of hours a week; a sponsor, mentor, peer coach or counselor they check in with. Requiring engagement is fine. Requiring a particular provider is not (see red lines).

Safety and respect

No weapons, violence or threats; no smoking or vaping inside; no candles, space heaters or cooking in bedrooms; naloxone location posted and everyone shown how to use it (in an overdose, call 911 first, then give naloxone); no harassment based on race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability or background; no romantic relationships between residents; no lending or borrowing money between residents; quiet hours.

Room inspections and searches

If the house inspects rooms or searches for alcohol and drugs, say so in the agreement the resident signs: when, who, with the resident present when possible, and what happens to anything found. Unannounced searches with no written basis are where disputes start.

Fees

Fees paid on time as the resident agreement sets, a receipt every time, and an invitation to talk to the house manager before a due date if money is tight.

Medications for addiction treatment (MAT)

Write it plainly: prescribed medications are allowed, including medications for opioid use disorder (buprenorphine, methadone, naltrexone). Residents take them only as prescribed, keep them in their locked box, never share or sell them, and dispose of leftovers at a take-back site.

• Why: the Justice Department's guidance treats people in treatment or recovery for opioid use disorder, including those taking prescribed medication, as generally protected by disability law (DOJ: The ADA and opioid use disorder). SAMHSA's Best Practices for Recovery Housing includes medications among its practices, and NARR has published guidance on supporting residents who take them (NARR MAT guide).
• Testing: a prescribed medication showing up on a test is expected, never a violation. Ask for a medication list at intake and update it.
• Funding: public funders increasingly require houses to support access to medications. A no-MAT rule can close those doors.

When a rule is broken

A written ladder keeps responses fair and predictable. This is the structure in our house rules template:

Step	For example	What happens
1. Reminder	A missed chore; a few minutes past curfew	A friendly reminder, noted in the house log
2. Written warning	Repeated small problems; a missed house meeting	A written warning and a make-up task, or an earlier curfew for a week
3. Behavior contract	Problems that continue after a warning; fees behind with no plan	A meeting with the house manager and owner, and a written contract with clear steps
4. Return to use	A positive test, or use the resident tells you about	The relapse policy: safety first, then a plan to stay under a contract or move to treatment or another safe place
5. Leaving the house	Violence, threats, weapons, selling drugs, bringing alcohol or drugs into the house, sexual misconduct	The resident leaves with a safe-transition plan; police are called only if someone is in danger

Add two sentences: steps may be skipped when safety requires it, and a resident who thinks a decision was unfair may tell the owner (or, in a certified home, the certifier).

The relapse response

A return to use is the most dangerous moment in a resident's stay: tolerance is low and overdose risk is high. Write the response so it protects the person and the house at the same time:

1. Safety first. Signs of overdose: call 911, give naloxone, stay. Very intoxicated: don't leave them alone. Violence or a weapon: everyone moves away and staff call 911.
2. Talk when they're sober. Privately and calmly; test if needed; listen. The goal is a plan, not a punishment.
3. Choose the next step: stay under a written recovery contract (if your model allows it and the house stays safe), go to detox or treatment (with the bed held for a set number of days if fees stay current), or move to another safe place.
4. A safe-transition plan before anyone leaves: where they'll sleep tonight and how they'll get there; no one asked to leave late at night unless staying puts others in danger; a list of detox and treatment programs, crisis lines (call or text 988) and shelters; a naloxone kit; a call to their emergency contact with consent.
5. Write it down and follow up within 48 hours, with consent.

A return to use shouldn't be a permanent bar: let a former resident reapply after a set time, or sooner after treatment, on the same terms as anyone else.

Asking someone to leave

• Call it a residence agreement, but don't count on the label. In some states a resident may be treated as a tenant no matter what the agreement says, and asking them to leave may require written notice or a court process. Have your attorney tell you which applies, and write the agreement and your discharge procedure to match.
• Never use self-help: no changing locks, removing doors, shutting off utilities, or holding a resident's ID, medication, benefits or belongings to force them out or force payment.
• Give written notice for a reason other than immediate safety, with the number of days your agreement and your state's law require.
• Belongings: store what's left for the number of days your agreement says, try to reach the resident and their emergency contact, dispose of medications safely, and ask your attorney about your state's abandoned-property rules.
• Refunds: state in the agreement how prepaid fees are refunded after move-out, and do it on time with a written accounting of any deductions.

What never goes in the rules

• "No Suboxone or methadone." See MAT.
• "Residents must attend [a specific] IOP" or any rule steering residents to one provider, lab or doctor, and especially one you have a financial tie to. Residents choose their own treatment. EKRA makes it a federal crime to pay or receive anything of value for referrals to or from a recovery home, for any payer, with fines up to $200,000 and up to 10 years in prison per violation.
• Free or discounted rent for attending a particular program, or "scholarships" a program pays for the residents it sends.
• Holding IDs, medications or belongings as security for fees.
• Rules aimed at a protected group ("no one with a mental health diagnosis") instead of at behavior. Screen every applicant with the same written criteria, and ask your attorney about single-sex and no-children rules under your state's fair housing law.
• A relapse rule that means "out tonight, no plan." It fails the person, invites a dispute and won't pass certification.

In Texas, the Patient Solicitation Act adds its own ban on paying or accepting anything of value for securing patients for a licensed provider (Occupations Code chapter 102); our Texas sober living guide covers both laws.

The resident agreement, section by section

Section	What it says
1. What this home is	A recovery residence with house rules; an agreement for a place in it, not meant to be a lease; the attorney confirms how your state treats it.
2. Fees	Program fee and when due (prorated first period); move-in deposit and when it's returned, with a written list of deductions; any testing fee; any late fee within state limits; a receipt for every payment; nothing held to force payment.
3. What's included	Furnished bed, storage, utilities, internet, household supplies, house meetings, peer support and testing; not included: food (unless stated), personal items, transportation, treatment.
4. House rules	Received, read and agreed; rules may change with a set number of days' written notice.
5. Consent to testing	Random and for-cause tests; refusal or tampering counts as positive; results private and shared only with written consent or in an emergency.
6. Medications	Disclose every medication, keep them locked, never share; prescribed medications, including for opioid use disorder, are allowed.
7. Return to use and moving out	The relapse policy applies; no one made to leave without a safe-transition plan; notice for non-safety reasons; the resident's notice when they leave; refunds.
8. Belongings	Kept for a set number of days, then donated or discarded; medications disposed of safely.
9–10. Emergency contact and naloxone	Who to call and when (initialed); where naloxone is kept; that tolerance drops after not using.
11–12. Fair housing and concerns	No discrimination; people taking prescribed medications welcome; reasonable accommodations on request; how to raise a concern with the manager, the owner and, if certified, the certifier.

Our Recovery Residence Launch includes the full house rules, resident agreement, intake and discharge forms, and the drug-testing and relapse policies, written for your house for your attorney to review.

Example outline (made up)

Here's how the pieces fit for a made-up house: Sample House, an 8-bed, Level II (monitored) home for adult men with a live-out house manager. Every name and number is invented to show the structure; set your own.

Rolling the rules out

• At move-in, the house manager walks through the rules and agreement line by line, shows where naloxone is and how to use it, and gets both signed. The resident keeps a copy.
• Use the house meeting to explain changes, collect residents' suggestions and record both in the minutes; give written notice before a change takes effect.
• Review the rules once a year and after any incident or complaint, with your attorney for anything that touches move-outs, fees or fair housing.
• Track it: each resident's signed documents, warnings, contracts, test results and payments in a locked file or secure software, so you can show you applied the rules the same way to everyone.

Starting from scratch? Our guide on how to start a sober living home covers the house, budget and certification around these documents, and our sober living startup cost guide runs the numbers. If you'd rather have it all drafted for you, the Recovery Residence Launch package writes every document on this page for your house.

Or book a free 30-minute call and bring your current rules; we'll tell you what we'd change. The person enforcing all this matters as much as the wording: see the house manager's job description and training.

Questions

What are typical sober living house rules?

Sobriety on and off the property, random drug and alcohol testing, a curfew that loosens with time, a weekly chore, limits on guests, a set number of recovery meetings or activities a week, a weekly house meeting, work or school hours, locked medications, no weapons or violence, fees paid on time, and a written ladder of consequences.

Can a sober living home kick you out for relapsing?

Many houses require a resident who returns to use to move to treatment or another safe place, but how they leave matters: safety first, help reaching treatment, a safe-transition plan, and whatever notice or process your state's landlord-tenant law requires if residents are treated as tenants. Some houses let a resident stay under a recovery contract. Write your approach down and apply it the same way to everyone.

Can sober living homes ban Suboxone or methadone?

They shouldn't. The Justice Department treats people taking prescribed medication for opioid use disorder as generally protected by disability law, SAMHSA's best practices support medications in recovery housing, and public funders often require access. Allow prescribed medications, store them locked, and read tests with the medication list.

Is a sober living resident a tenant?

It depends on the state and the facts. A resident agreement can say it isn't a lease, but some states treat residents as tenants anyway, which affects notice and removal. Your attorney should answer this before you write your discharge procedure.

Can residents be required to work?

Many houses require a set number of hours a week of work, school, volunteering or treatment. Write it as hours of productive activity with options, and grant a reasonable accommodation when a disability makes work impossible.

How often should residents be drug tested?

A common pattern is at least weekly on random days for the first 30 days, then a set number of random tests a month, plus for-cause tests after a night away, a hospital stay or when use is suspected. Set your frequency in a written policy and apply it to everyone.

Sources

• U.S. Department of Justice, The ADA and opioid use disorder; The Fair Housing Act
• SAMHSA, Best Practices for Recovery Housing (PEP23-10-00-002, 2023)
• National Alliance for Recovery Residences, NARR Standard 3.0; Guide on medication-assisted recovery in recovery residences
• 18 U.S.C. 220 (Eliminating Kickbacks in Recovery Act); Texas Occupations Code chapter 102
• 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, 988lifeline.org

Cima Consulting isn't a law firm. The example outline is made up to show structure; it isn't a template to use without your attorney's review.