Living with someone who’s financially irresponsible

by Jen (March 1, 2008)

If you pay your bills on time but find yourself living with someone - a roommate, a relative, a partner, whatever - who casually decides, “Oh, yeah… see, I’m not paying my half of the electricity this month. I mean, you have to go two months before they cut it off. I’ll pay you next month!”, the ideal thing to do is get rid of the person and find a better person to share housing with. The whole point of sharing housing is to save money - with a roommate like this, you’d be better off living alone.

But what if you care about the person? What if they’re your best friend from childhood? What if you think they’re just young and maybe they were raised by irresponsible slobs? Is it your job to reform them? Or choose between paying their half (and hoping they get around to repaying you, though it’s unlikely) or having your credit ruined?

Here’s a rule I would suggest: explain it once. If that doesn’t work, get rid of them. It’s not that hard to understand: good credit comes from paying bills on time all the time. Good credit results in better mortgage opportunities, an easier time getting the apartment you like, sometimes even jobs (some employers check credit to see if you’re a responsible person). If they don’t get it, that means they’re playing you. If you think they’re your best friend in the world, you are mistaken. You are their meal ticket.

If you explain it and they seem to get it, give them a couple of months and a list of things they must do to prove to you they’re serious. If they lapse into old habits, kick them out. Sorry if it sounds harsh, but life is too short for responsible people to be stressed out by irresponsible people using them - and that is what’s happening in a situation like this.

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