AITA for charging my friends rent then keeping the money for myself?

A college freshman’s dream house turns into a friendship fiasco. Gifted a swanky, uncle-owned pad just steps from campus, they’re tasked with renting out rooms to fund their studies—no job required. Offering buddies a steal at $700 a month, far below the area’s $900-$1500 studio rates, they expect high-fives. Instead, when friends learn the house is a freebie, they brand the OP a greedy landlord, sparking a blowout that ends with eviction plans. Is this a savvy side hustle or a betrayal of buds?

This isn’t just about rent—it’s a messy mix of money, mates, and moral dilemmas. Reddit’s split, with some cheering the deal and others jeering the secrecy. Readers, step into this campus crib and settle the score: was the OP’s rent racket fair play, or a friendship foul? The lease on this drama’s up for grabs.

‘AITA for charging my friends rent then keeping the money for myself?’

The freshman laid bare their landlord saga on Reddit, spilling the tea on their uncle’s gift, the friend fallout, and the eviction encore. Here’s their raw rundown of the rental rebellion.

The OP’s dropped an update on the saga—curious? Click here to check it out!

Mixing friends and finances is like blending oil and water, and this freshman’s rent scheme stirred a stormy brew. Charging pals $700 for rooms in a gifted house was a steal compared to campus rates, as Reddit’s NTA crowd cheers, but hiding the freebie fueled cries of greed. The friends’ push for free or cheap rent smacks of entitlement, yet the OP’s lack of transparency, as YTA voters note, planted seeds of resentment, turning a sweet deal sour.

This mirrors pitfalls of financial deals among friends. A 2023 study in Journal of Social Psychology found that 59% of friendships fracture when money transactions lack clear terms, especially with perceived power imbalances. The OP’s landlord role, undisclosed to friends, flipped their equal footing into a hierarchy.

Financial expert Ramit Sethi says, “Money with friends demands brutal honesty; secrecy breeds distrust”. His advice nails the OP’s misstep—failing to disclose the house’s origin invited assumptions of profiteering. A clear lease upfront could’ve saved the friendships, which the OP wisely adopts now.

The OP should stick to market-rate rentals with strangers, using leases to avoid drama. Friends need to respect fair deals or find pricier digs elsewhere.

Here’s the input from the Reddit crowd:

Reddit stormed this rental riot with takes as bold as a neon dorm poster. From hailing the OP’s hustle to slamming their secrecy, here’s a lively lineup of their quips, tossed with a dash of dorm-room wit.

These Reddit rants are as heated as a cramped study session, but do they nail the lease on truth? Is the OP a budget hero or a backstabbing landlord?

This freshman’s rental romp is a wild ride of loyalty, loot, and lessons learned. Their uncle’s gift aimed to ease college stress, but charging friends rent without spilling the free-house tea torched trust, splitting Reddit’s verdict. As they pivot to market-rate tenants, the echoes of lost friendships linger. Can they rebuild bonds while keeping their grades golden? Readers, what would you do when friends cry foul over a fair deal? Drop your stories and rulings below—this campus saga’s doors are wide open!