What is a guarantor on a lease? Somebody who signs the lease promising to pay if the tenant does not.
A guarantor signs a lease alongside the tenant and takes on the tenant's financial obligations if the tenant fails to meet them. Landlords ask for one when an applicant is short of the income or credit history the property requires, which is why first apartments and student rentals so often need one.
The promise is real and it is usually the whole lease, not the first month: unpaid rent, damage beyond wear, and often the cost of collecting it. A guarantor is generally on the hook for the full term rather than until the tenant proves themselves, and renewals can carry the guarantee forward unless the document says otherwise.
Read what is being guaranteed before signing. A guarantee limited to a stated amount, or to the original term, is a different thing from an open one, and which one you are signing is on the page.
A worked example
An applicant earning $3,200 a month applies for a $1,700 apartment where the property requires three times the rent in income. A parent signs as guarantor, and is liable for the rent and for damage beyond wear for the whole twelve-month term, not just until the tenant settles in.
Questions people ask
What is the difference between a guarantor and a co-signer?
In everyday use they are used interchangeably for the person who promises to pay. Where a distinction is drawn, a co-signer is a party to the lease with a right to occupy, while a guarantor guarantees the money without living there. What matters is what the document you are signing actually says.
How long is a guarantor liable?
Normally for the full lease term, and often for renewals unless the guarantee says otherwise. It usually covers unpaid rent and damage beyond normal wear, and sometimes the cost of collection.