Local governments often cap the number of unrelated individuals who may live together in a single residence. This policy explainer introduces these caps and discusses their effect on the supply of housing in Kansas. It suggests that allowing more unrelated individuals to live together is an efficient and easy way to increase the housing supply using existing housing units.

Key Findings:

• Eighteen first-class cities in Kansas have strict bans, prohibiting living arrangements of more than two to four unrelated roommates—arrangements like those seen on TV shows such as The Golden Girls and Three’s Company.
• Kansas cities with the most restrictive unrelated roommate bans have more than three times the proportion of empty bedrooms as Kansas cities with no such bans.

Policy Implications:

• State legislators and local policymakers interested allowing homeowners to make the best use of their extra bedrooms should consider removing these restrictions. Many problems these bans supposedly prevent, such as overcrowding, lack of parking spaces, or raucous roommates, can be addressed with existing general occupancy limits, parking requirements, or nuisance rules.

Download the PDF here.