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Making ends meet

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The Seldom Killer:
1) Yes, without a doubt.

2) If you think they have underpaid for the space that they have used, particularly as they never talked about a price, you could ask them for some more money. However, as nothing is down in writing it's take more than a Judge Judy session to get it out of them if they don't want to pay.

3) It's very hard to know what to suggest you ask if you have to go to new roomates. I'd suggest trawling rental agencies and seeing what something similar would go for.

4) Seems reasonable.

Elysiana:
For 2) I guess at this point we've waited too long to really ask about it again anyway, I was more curious as to whether roommates should still pay closer to half when we're honestly getting more out of the place. Like if we were all renting some random house together, I would be pretty ticked if they thought they should pay way less, but since we may be getting equity, is it just expected that we should pick up 2/3 of the cost? Most rooms-for-rent around here go for about $400-$500/mo. and they didn't seem to have any problem paying $700/mo for a hotel room - no washer/dryer, no extra rooms, nothing but a bed, a bathroom, a TV, and a kitchenette.

I guess I'm just venting at this point. I really don't know how to bring up the question of whether they're moving, though. I hope I'm just reading too much into it, but I don't want to find out the day they move and then have to scramble to find someone else.

The Seldom Killer:
I'd just go with "So what's the good news?". If she looks at you blankly, just say you noticed her FB post. I'm presuming she is a legitimate friend on FB, hence yu getting to read the status. She might geniunely be waiting until she's told people in an order which is important to her before announcing to the wider world.

As for how much they should have paid. It's always difficult when you're in the position of getting a bargain yourself. The one factor that I always look to is Fair Market Value. If the rooms go for $4-500 then $400 would be the minimum they should have been paying when finances allow. That sholuld alwas be regardless of what you're paying for it. Sometimes friends have to be customers and the decent thing for them to do is to be good customers. In my estimation they've taken a liberty too long and that has now put a strain on the friendship. Alas when you go cap handed to them, you end up looking like the bad guy. Things like the flooding are an accepted risk of living with appliances and what insurance is for if you want it. The harsh reality is that you've let yourself get hosed and if your friends are going to be moving, I doubt they're going to want to part with the money if they can get away with it.

I'd suggest getting ready to let that room.

Lines:
You should definitely ask her about her posts. They are renting from you and you guys need to know if they're going to be leaving.

Also, if/when you get other people, you should make them sign a lease or something. I think you definitely were being underpaid.

Elysiana:
We've known them for about three years, and they originally moved in with us like... a year and a half ago? Something like that. But yeah, the friendship has definitely taken a turn for the worse. We get along with them just fine, but there's certainly a lot more strain now. Plus they've gotten really reclusive - they come home from work, hole up in their room, and only come out to heat up food and take it back downstairs.

As far as asking about it... after she wrote the "happy dance" post and a few people had "liked" it and her brother posted "Oh my sweet Carolina" (which is a song about going home to Carolina) I posted something fairly lighthearted like "Happy dance while you're at work? You okay? har har" and she wrote back "It's just one of those days!" And then, as I mentioned earlier, someone posted "What did they say?" and she hasn't written anything since.

So she's pretty much avoided the question on there anyway, but I also left it pretty wide open for that (damn my passive-aggressive self. I have got to work on that). I guess my only option now is to ask her straight up when we all get home tonight.

Yeah, if we do sublet again, we will definitely get something in writing. That was a bad move on our part. You like to think that friends won't do you wrong, I guess.

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