a rooming house, also called a "multi-tenant house", is a "dwelling with multiple rooms rented out individually", in which the tenants share bathroom and kitchen facilities. rooming houses are often used as housing for low-income people, as rooming houses (along with single room occupancy units in hotels) are the least expensive housing for single adults, with rents in the $300-$425 cad range. rooming houses are usually owned and operated by private landlords. rooming houses are better described as a "living arrangement" rather than a specially "built form" of housing; rooming houses involve people who are not related living together, often in an existing house, and sharing a kitchen, bathroom, and in some cases a living room or dining room. while there are purpose-built rooming houses, these are rare.