Rent Solo vs Roommates (while in debt repayment mode)

June 1, 2017 5:38 AM

I want to pay off my massive debt as quickly as possible. Should I suck it up and continue living with roommates, or should I postpone my debt repayment a bit to improve my living conditions?

I'm in my mid-30s and aggressively paying down my huge student load debt. I've got about $30K left to go. If I follow my current plan of living frugally with roommates, it will take me about 20 months to pay off. I can almost taste the freedom!

Problem is, the roommate situation is making me uncomfortable. All the usual roomie gripes feel amplified now that I'm in my 30s.

3 guys, 1 bathroom. They're not friends of mine, and the place is missing that social bonus of communal living I had back in my 20s with friends. They're pleasant and kind enough, although it feels like a black cloud follows them around. Lots of drinking, getting high, sleeping, probable depression, general lack of ambition and stagnation, and a seemingly endless amount of bad luck happens to them. I am trying to focus on self-improvement and growth while saving money, and I can't help but fear this stuff is contagious! (half-joking)

I'm a neatnik so end up cleaning the place myself because I can't stand it anymore. It's annoying how difficult it is to maintain my standard of cleanliness with them around.
No matter how many mature discussions we have, doors are left unlocked which raises a security risk. People smoke indoors despite the request to not smoke (from myself and as written in the lease).
I've already come home to more than one "incident" (a kitchen fire 2 months ago that still hasn't been fully cleaned up...)
Things like my toiletries sometimes grow legs and go missing.

Overall, the rent is cheap and I'm able to save a ton of money to throw at the pile of debt, but it's in a boring part of the city and I don't enjoy it much here. In general, I don't feel it's the place of refuge or sanctuary that I crave. However, I can probably change my mindset and tolerate it for a year or so.

I recently found a cheap 1 bedroom in a much more appealing neighborhood, but the extra cost would mean it would take 29 months to pay off the debt. I think this would drastically improve my living conditions day to day.

Is it worth it to move out?

posted by mannermode to Human Relations (30 answers total)

I think so much of how people are going to answer this will depend upon their tolerance for both debt and for roommates, but oh my god, if this were me, there would be no question. A vast improvement in quality of life, in my living space, in exchange for less than a year extra of debt? I would be out of there in a heartbeat. Why put yourself through this for 20 more months?
posted by tiger tiger at 5:45 AM on June 1, 2017 [29 favorites]

What is the interest rate on the debt compared to inflation? i.e.How much are you renting the money for per year? What would that cost you for 9 months more?

Does the debt affect your credit score?

If you answer these qs it will help....
posted by lalochezia at 5:45 AM on June 1, 2017

Take the apartment. If you get it, move and din't look back.
posted by jbenben at 5:46 AM on June 1, 2017 [2 favorites]

Why isn't "new and less depressing roommates in a new shared apartment" an option?

That said, I'd go 1 bedroom all the way. 9 more months is manageable.
posted by slateyness at 5:50 AM on June 1, 2017 [16 favorites]

Move out! Your quality of life has value. Considering just two factors for quality of life: (1) roommate/living situation and (2) debt situation, it seems to me based on your description that 29 months of living with a bad debt situation but good roommate/living situation will outweigh 20 months living with a bad roommate situation.

Maybe it would be worth staying if they were good roommates and you were just ready to be on your own, but that's not the situation. There was an apartment fire, they use/steal your stuff, they don't clean up and they can't even bother to lock the door. Move out!
posted by Caz721 at 5:51 AM on June 1, 2017 [9 favorites]

Yeah, I think it's more than worth it. I didn't realize how much my crappy living conditions were affecting my mood and well-being until I got out of there. Meaning, I knew I was pretty miserable but I didn't realize how much better it could be until I got the hell out.

Living on your own after having terrible roommates is glorious, and well worth less than a year of additional loan pay-off time, IMO.
posted by rachaelfaith at 5:53 AM on June 1, 2017 [1 favorite]

I think this is a bit of a false choice you're laying out for yourself. These particular roommates seem to suck -- but that doesn't mean that all roommates suck. Why don't you look for some more congenial folks to live with, and continue your quest to kick the debt? It sounds like you are excited and eager to be rid of that debt for good (and it will feel so good when it's gone!) -- so find yourself some different/better roommates!
posted by ourobouros at 5:53 AM on June 1, 2017 [4 favorites]

Of the two choices, I'd go for the one bedroom, but like others have said, doing some checking to see if there is a third option (better roommates, ultra cheap studio apartment, etc) before deciding would seem to be smart.
posted by Dip Flash at 5:57 AM on June 1, 2017 [2 favorites]

I vote for moving out.

I don't feel it's the place of refuge or sanctuary that I crave...

Imagine not having to put energy into... avoiding these people, putting up with secondhand smoke, looking for your toiletries, cleaning up after them, wishing you didn't live in such a crappy place...

Imagine... your music is playing, you're puttering around in your kitchen, the can opener is right where you left it... you want to watch some show you like, the living room is modest but it's tidy and comfortable... you're trying to get out the door in the morning, your favorite soap and shampoo are right there... you come home knowing nobody has left a pile of dishes in the sink...

What if you had enough peace of mind that you could think of some cool new side hustle to make a little more money with the extra time/energy you free up from not dealing with this stuff?

Move out and plan your debt-free celebration for November 2019.
posted by dywypi at 6:09 AM on June 1, 2017 [15 favorites]

Yeah I agree with everyone else, try to find other roommates! Having your own bathroom (like I did in my last place with roommates) is a major upgrade in itself, but it's also not that hard to screen for people who aren't hard partiers.

For what it's worth, I'm in a studio now (~400 sqft) and it's plenty of room for me and all my stuff, including a pet cat, but I'm in my mid-20s so I get that I may have fewer storage needs than someone who's had 5-10 more years to accumulate belongings.
posted by capricorn at 6:09 AM on June 1, 2017

I'd probably tell you to move anyway, but 9 extra months of debt? Move! Why are you even thinking about not moving? It's not like it's going to extend your debt by an extra 3 years.

(I have nothing against having roommates but your situation seems exhausting. At the very least, go find new ones. But I think taking the 1 bedroom is just fine.)
posted by darksong at 6:12 AM on June 1, 2017 [6 favorites]

Don't forget the other costs of your own place, like, you know, furniture, and having to pay all the utilities yourself. On the other hand, there might be cost savings to having your own place, i.e. maybe you'll go out to eat/drink less if you have a nice place to hang out (and invite people over to), you won't have to replace "missing" toiletries, and you might spend less on cleaning supplies even.

All in all, though, moving sounds like a good bet.
posted by mskyle at 6:15 AM on June 1, 2017 [6 favorites]

There are roommate situations where you're not coming home to fires or dealing with unlocked doors.

You might consider seeking a different living situation, with or without roommates. Consider the cost or loss that could occur should your current roommates:

A) burn the apartment down
B) leave the door unlocked
C) are assessed for smoking in the apartment
D) any combination of the above

As people have already mentioned, there's a mental health benefit to living on your own. I agree, I moved out of a communal living situation as soon as I could despite my debt. But if you can stomach good roommates, then you might consider exploring both options.
posted by teabag at 6:16 AM on June 1, 2017 [2 favorites]

This is really a personal judgment call. In your shoes I'd be thinking back to previous experiences with good roommates. If you could move back in with them, would you? If so, maybe all you need is better roommates. If not, maybe you're just at a point in your life where you want to live alone.

(In my shoes I'd move to the one bedroom, no question or hesitation, but that's just me. Metafilter swings pretty strongly toward the introverted, so you're probably going to see a bias toward that in these responses.)
posted by Stacey at 6:26 AM on June 1, 2017 [2 favorites]

It's student loan debt? Sure it's good to pay it off as fast as you can but you don't have to! It's not like it's credit card debt with huge interest and fees, right? Your quality of life is extremely important. Your emotional and physical health are going to suffer if you have to stay in your current situation. Find a better place to live in a more interesting neighborhood and take longer to pay off your loan. You won't regret it.
posted by mareli at 6:42 AM on June 1, 2017 [3 favorites]

I moved from a terrible dorm-mate situation into a new room nine months in. I still remember the feeling of utter relief I felt walking into my new, terrible-roomie-less room, because until I got out, I hadn't realised how much it had been wearing on me.

Move, no question.
posted by Tamanna at 6:48 AM on June 1, 2017 [1 favorite]

Even if it takes you another year or two to pay off the debt, your quality of life is more important than money. I would absolute move if I were you.
posted by Automocar at 7:06 AM on June 1, 2017 [1 favorite]

Your life is not infinite and neither is your youth so those 20 months have significant value that you have to weigh up against the money you would save. Getting out of 30k of debt in 29 months is still excellent. Move out!
posted by hazyjane at 7:06 AM on June 1, 2017 [2 favorites]

If your housemates are careless and you're robbed or there is, god forbid, a significant fire, it will set you back a lot more than slightly more costly digs. If it were just that they were messy and kind of awful, I would say to tough it out, but if there's fire risk or robbery risk you should go.

Can you find more congenial housemates?
posted by Frowner at 7:21 AM on June 1, 2017

I was going to suggest sticking it out until I saw that it will only take nine more months for you to pay back your debt without roommates.

If you really want to hustle to pay off debts faster, it sounds like you might be happier with a side job than with roommates. For instance, I use the Rover app to make some money taking care of cute pups.
posted by cacao at 7:29 AM on June 1, 2017

Depression, unhealthy habits and bad luck are contagious!!! Moving out will hugely improve your quality of life, and delaying paying the debt by one year will have a minoscule effect on your overall happiness. You won't get this year back if you stay!! I say do it!
posted by winterportage at 7:30 AM on June 1, 2017

Nine months to escape a shady situation is not too bad. Just make sure you've accounted for all additional expenses of solo living (e.g., whole cable bill).
posted by praemunire at 7:50 AM on June 1, 2017

Rent solo and look for a second job
posted by Kwadeng at 7:53 AM on June 1, 2017

Echoing the call for better roommates if possible, of course. Otherwise, can you split the difference? Stick it out for several more months and THEN get a new place (or different roommates)?
posted by veggieboy at 7:54 AM on June 1, 2017

This is me! I could have stayed in my old apartment and paid off my loans faster, but I eventually decided it wasn't worth dealing with a gross apartment and roommates I didn't get along with. I recently moved into a larger apartment with fewer roommates, and the peace of mind is worth having to stretch out my student loan payments by a few months. It's nice being able to go home to a clean apartment, in a nicer neighborhood, with roommates who are invested in keeping things clean and pleasant.

Move out! Your quality of life matters. Nine more months is almost nothing in the long run.
posted by supermassive at 8:08 AM on June 1, 2017

In my opinion, nine months is a negligible amount of extra time to be repaying the debt, unless you have some kind of real deadline and it's not just self imposed. Seriously, 9 months is nothing.

Paying down debts quickly is a financial choice, but all financial choices are also quality of life choices. For me, personally, the diminished quality of life living in this shithole with these nincompoops would outweigh the improved quality of life from paying the debt 9 months earlier.

You could always do a breakdown of your interest every month and figure out exactly how much extra it will cost you in money dollars to spend 9 extra months paying your student debt. Let's say for kicks that it's an extra, I dunno. $2000. Is it worth $2000 to you to not live in this situation any more? Personally, I'd pay a lot not to live somewhere where my stuff went missing, my neighbourhood was unsatisfying and my roommates were slobs who started fires, left doors unlocked and got intoxicated and negative around me on the reg.

You only get one life. Go live somewhere that doesn't suck.
posted by windykites at 9:56 AM on June 1, 2017 [1 favorite]

I'd probably go an extra 20 months into debt to get some peace and quiet tbh.
Move! 9 months is nothing.

Plus they'll be happier months :)
posted by fullerine at 10:29 AM on June 1, 2017 [1 favorite]

I think you should definitely do it (move), and maybe even put some of the time/mental energy you're pouring into cleaning up after these slobs and dealing with them into a side gig of some sort to make some extra cash, if the money part of it bugs you.
posted by rainbowbrite at 4:52 PM on June 1, 2017

How much is your time and mental and emotional well-being worth to you? Let's say you value yourself at fifty bucks an hour, and you value peace of mind at, what, a hundred bucks a week? So figure out how much time you spend cleaning up after these slobs, and add a few Benjamins or whatever for a healthy brain, and add that in to your calculations.
posted by turbid dahlia at 8:13 PM on June 1, 2017

I wouldn't live there for 20 more months. But I would be wary of the extra cost of living alone. Your bills will be more expensive for sure. Look for another share place, especially if you need to build up a decent emergency fund after you've paid off your debt.
posted by kjs4 at 9:17 PM on June 1, 2017