Tenants Accusing You of Being Greedy? Teach Them a Lesson by Selling Your House
Some people are ungrateful,
no matter what you do . . .
some just think they deserve
to always be catered to.
Some are unappreciative,
they show no gratitude
they have an ingrate spirit
with a thankless attitude. By Deborah Ann Belka
Yes, let’s admit it. We’ve all had encounters with this kind of person, a person who thrives without a heart and a gracious spirit. A person whose sole interest in life is himself. No matter how much kindness you show, no matter how much consideration you give, this person thinks he’s entitled to everything you’ve done for him — and more.
Moreover, he thinks he has the right to insult your character in any instance in which he feels you’re being unfair to him or you’re denying what he wants. Indeed, an ungrateful person feels so superior to everyone else that he thinks the world owes him.
Such kind of ingratitude was what this Original Poster with the user u/Historical-Joke9732 encountered recently. And he ended up selling his house to get rid of his life of the two tenants who accused him of ripping all of them lessees off.
OP, who wrote his story on Reddit’s popular r/AmItheA–hole forum, starts it with the following details: “I own (have a massive mortgage on) a house in a HCOL city. I have four roommates. I have the basement suite and the upstairs bis rented to one couple and two single people. They know I own the house and all of them were recommended to me by friends or family. I still required a lease agreement and security deposit as well as first and last month’s rent. I just was willing to rent to them at below market rate because i didn’t have to advertise or arrange for a property manager. Between the four of them I collect enough to cover the mortgage and utilities with a little left over. I save my money to use it to pay for major repairs and maintenance.”
OP continued to reveal on his post that he would be starting on a new job the following year, in another city. And so, he offered the couple a chance to rent the basement suite for a bit more money. The couple agreed since it was a good deal that included a massive bedroom upgrade, a private living space, a kitchen, and a bathroom.
This was what followed next, according to OP: “I asked the two singles if either of them wanted to take the master bedroom that would be empty. They both declined but asked if they could turn it into a home office for them. I said sure but they would have to cover the rent for the room. They think I am being unreasonable. Since I will be making more money off the couple, they think I should keep their rent the same and let them have the room for free. I offered it to them for 80% of what I was getting before. They called me a selfish a–hole for taking all their money.”
Yes, that incident sparked the trouble, in spite of the fact that if the two individuals had agreed, they would still be paying less than the city’s market value for a single room. It resulted in a more serious conflict with the tenants’ backers calling up OP, maliciously accusing him of greediness and trying to take advantage of their friends.
Fed up, OP decided to contact a property investor who wanted to buy his house and uphold the current leases including the new agreement with the couple. But the leases of the other two tenants were up soon, and should they seek renewal with the new owner, it could mean higher rental fees. If they can’t afford the new rental payments, they would have to move to less comfortable living spaces.
But then, it was already beyond OP, and he honestly did not want to get involved anymore. He would have wanted to stay and keep the house, but the bitter conflict that arose between him and the two other tenants, along with their friends, was too much for him.
Is he an a–hole for choosing to give up his house and just walk away?
The verdict of the AITA community: Not the A–hole.
A reaction from annoyingusername99 says: “NTA. Do you think they’d stil be A H to you if you had rented that master suite out to someone else? Screw them & everyone who agrees with them. They are the greedy people wanting something for free (which is taking money from you) when they’re already getting an awesome deal. Do what benefits you – sell away.”
A Remark from frankenspider says: “Friendly should be the default setting when interacting with people. They aren’t reciprocating your kindness, and you don’t owe them anything. NTA.”
Meanwhile, djlindee wrote: “This! Even if they hadn’t acted like jerks, this is a business arrangement! You don’t owe them anything except generally treating them kindly, reasonable notice, and following the law.”
Similarly, SecretJealous4342 voiced out: “NTA. If you weren’t going to be there to take care of the house, you would have to pay someone to do it. This seems like the right decision for you. They blew their sweet deal by being greedy themselves.”
