The 7 People You Run Into When Subletting Your Apartment

By Ian Acosta on June 26, 2017

Subletting your apartment is sometimes a choice for young college students. Other times it is an obligation. The supplemental income brought in helps offset some bills, which for a financially strapped college student could be huge.

However, as with any college experience, there will be unique and eccentric people you will meet along the way in your quest to sublet. Here are seven types of people you may run into when trying to sublease.

1. Slobs

These people are a mess. Everyone says, “Oh, of course, I clean up after myself. You will not see a mess at all.”

But do they? More often than not, no. Keep an eye out for these people. You do not want to have to be their parent as much as possible in order to clean for them.

Here is a litmus test to gauge if someone is a messy person: To see if you have a messy one on your hands, show the person where the cleaning supplies are and gauge their reaction. If they look revolted by the cleaning utensils or don’t even know what they are, you, my friend, have a messy subtenant on your hands, so you probably shouldn’t pick them.

2. Clingers

You do not want to deal with these people. They do not want to leave or they overstay their welcome even when your subletting agreement is up. What is the best way to deal with these people?  Draw up an agreement for the specified length of time the lease will be. Sign and date it between the two of you, have your landlord observe the signing, and keep a record of the agreement. Do not let your subtenant take advantage of YOUR apartment.

3. Complainers

These are people who will look for any and every reason to get out of paying full rent. They will complain and say, “Oh, the bed is not comfy enough,” or, “This bathroom water pressure is so bad,” or even, “I do not have enough cabinet space!”

The point is these people will do WHATEVER it takes to make your life miserable and be cheap. Be the stronger person and stand your ground. If they are already making faces or raising an eyebrow in an evil/suspicious manner, you have a complainer on your hands, and you should drop them like nobody’s business.

4. Excusers

Much like complainers, these people are the worst. It is one thing or the other.

“Yeah, sorry I cannot pay rent right now, I am still waiting for a check to clear.” “Sorry I haven’t cleaned; there are no more supplies.” “My friend’s dog got loose and smashed a couple lamps.”

Like I said, the worst. You don’t want one of these people living in your place. When you are showing the potential subtenant around, tell them when you need the rent check and how much it will be. If they are already trying to negotiate the timing or tell you about other things they have to pay for, you might not want to pick them, or you’ll be paying the full amount of rent and having someone break your stuff on top of that.

5. Partiers

These people will always throw a party, no matter the time, no matter the day. What can this lead to? Unwanted, random strangers in your apartment who can potentially mess it all up. Additionally, this could give you a bad rap with your landlord, especially if the neighbors are always calling the cops on your place, and if there are a bunch of wine stains in the carpet and beer cans scattered across the yard, you might be held responsible.

Ask the potential subtenant how they feel about the occasional party. If they mention that they plan on having some friends over a lot, maybe go with someone else.

6. Over-analyzers

Somewhat similar to complainers in that they will tend to nitpick over things, but these people are typically genuine. They will no doubt inquire about the rent, utilities, usual household expenses, landlord, neighboring tenants, and other minute details that maybe you may not have even thought of. These people like to do their homework so that they can make the best-informed decision for themselves.

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7. Smokers

These people will be pretty laid back and not care much about anything. They will no doubt be chill, however, they could be lax on some responsibilities such as paying rent. Also, it could leave, let us say, a foul smell in your apartment that you will have to deal with when you move back in.

If you let this person stay, they could leave out paraphernalia, or other unwanted items. This could be a major problem if the authorities are called due to the smell. Do not even take the chance with this person. It could blow up in your face and end up getting you evicted as well.

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