Housemate's girlfriend wants to move in

VonLuck

I am currently sharing a house and one of my housemates has asked if his girlfriend could move in. I have no problems with her being in the house, she is a lovely girl and she pretty much is in the house for most of the week so it wouldn't be a major change to the status quo.

The issue comes when she starts to use hot water, electricity, taking up more storage space in cupboards and fridge etc.

I think it's fair to ask her to pay her share of the bills, but it reasonable to ask for her to pay part of the rent as well? Her name wouldn't be on the lease, and the landlord would have no idea she was living there. Could this cause issues down the line?

Zaph

If it's going to be her home then yes, she needs to be paying her share of the rent. At the very least the reduced rent for the other housemates will compensate you for the inconvenience of having another body in the house.

Personally I'd say no, there will be a very different dynamic in the house with a couple living there along with the fact you will be sharing with an extra person and all that goes along with that.

Problem is saying no will likely put you on bad terms with the housemate but that's just the way it is I'm afraid.

Nika Bolokov

Depends.......If your single shell most likely have some hot single friends.

Not joking, if thats the case move her in double quick !

Samuel T. Cogley

You're required to inform the LL - if in a pressure zone he won't be able to increase the rent (other than inline with the RTA) If I understand it correctly.

Bills per person, rent per room usually but if they're the only couple then they should be paying a small premium (€100 or so) IMO.

Owryan

Why would she not contribute to the rent if she moves in?

ED E

If it was 2 ->3 I'd be an almost definite no as they then become the majority leaving you a residential third wheel.

By your wording its at least 3->4, in that case theres no risk of them "taking over" for lack of a better expression. If the rent was 500x3 I'd change it to 450, 450, 600 and let the couple split it how they wish. Bills divided equally.

Sleeper12

I'm sure she's not expecting to live there rent free.
They'll be sharing a room so I wouldn't expect her to pay a full portion but on principle alone I'd insist she pays some rent & an equal portion of the bills.

jimmycrackcorm

VonLuck wrote:

I have no problems with her being in the house, she is a lovely girl and she pretty much is in the house for most of the week so it wouldn't be a major change to the status quo.

You already have the downsides so you might as well get some benefits by having her move in and splitting the rent and bills.

Who knows, you might want to move a girlfriend in also at some point.

VonLuck

Samuel T. Cogley wrote: »

You're required to inform the LL - if in a pressure zone he won't be able to increase the rent (other than inline with the RTA) If I understand it correctly.

Bills per person, rent per room usually but if they're the only couple then they should be paying a small premium (€100 or so) IMO.

Is that a legal requirement?

Owryan wrote: »

Why would she not contribute to the rent if she moves in?

Well each room is rented out for a set figure. Just because there are two people in the room, it's still the same space being rented. I suppose that's more applicable if a whole house or apartment is being rented out. The landlord wouldn't care how many people are living there.

robp

VonLuck wrote: »

Samuel T. Cogley wrote: »

You're required to inform the LL - if in a pressure zone he won't be able to increase the rent (other than inline with the RTA) If I understand it correctly.

Bills per person, rent per room usually but if they're the only couple then they should be paying a small premium (€100 or so) IMO.

Is that a legal requirement?

Owryan wrote: »

Why would she not contribute to the rent if she moves in?

 The landlord wouldn't care how many people are living there.

Some landlords might care, for all sorts of reasons. For example increasing the number of people increases wear n tear.

jimmycrackcorm

jimmycrackcorm wrote: »

You already have the downsides so you might as well get some benefits by having her move in and splitting the rent and bills.

Well I'd have kicked up long before this about someone having a guest around rent free. People are far too much of a pushover.

She can't move in and she can't stay any more than
1 or 2 nights a week would be my answer!

Also the LL has to be informed, a proper LL should be limiting the number of people in the property as it increases wear and tear etc.

mickmac76

Inform the landlord and see if he is OK with it first. Wear and tear will increase with an extra person in the house eg electric showers, washing machines and dryers may have to be replaced sooner and an experienced landlord will know that. Also your friends relationship might be all roses now but when there is an argument it can lead to tension in the house. This is why so many people hate sharing with couples.

asteroids over berlin

It is still an inconvenience as such to you, an arrangement needs ot be agreed which will ultimately mean your portion of the rent payment is reduced by a fair amount

Arcade_Tryer

VonLuck wrote: »

I think it's fair to ask her to pay her share of the bills, but it reasonable to ask for her to pay part of the rent as well? Her name wouldn't be on the lease, and the landlord would have no idea she was living there. Could this cause issues down the line?

Absolutely fair to ask her for rent.

While they might feel "as one" and consider themselves "other halves", in reality they are two different people, and her presence will mean less space for existing housemates, additional time constraints (e.g. waiting for her to get out of the bathroom or finish using the oven), and extra wear and tear to the property. Not to mention the risk you will be taking on regarding the landlord finding out.

She should be paying half the rent of the rest of the housemates. At least.

Gael23

There's a couple sharing a room in the house I'm in and they pay a €50 premium. Bills should be split per person rather than per room.

Victor

Note that the house dynamic will change. There is a strong risk that she will now think that she is 'in change'.

Sleeper12 wrote: »

I'm sure she's not expecting to live there rent free.
They'll be sharing a room so I wouldn't expect her to pay a full portion but on principle alone I'd insist she pays some rent & an equal portion of the bills.

She isn't just occupying the bedroom, she will be occupying the shared rooms also. At the moment, let us say you have your breakfast while your flatmate uses the bathroom and vice versa. From now on, that won't be happening.

This is old, but relevant: http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2054867603&

Lux23

If this was me, I would agree as long as the rent and bills are split three ways.