DEAR ABBY: Last month, I found out a friend of mine was going to be living out of his van. I couldn't let him do that, so I offered him my second bedroom and put him on the lease.
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He told me Uber doesn't pay much, and he couldn't afford half the $1,700-a-month rent, so we agreed he would pay what he could, roughly $200-$300 of the $1,700. I said it was OK because I didn't take him in for money purposes. I did it to help a friend in need, and I had spare space.
I quickly found out that he's a hoarder. His entire bedroom is full of his boxes of stuff (manga, anime, books, etc., not furniture or a TV), so much so that he's been sleeping on my living room couch. He also spends all his time at home and Ubered only the last two days of the month to make the $200 to pay me.
I guess my question is, our agreement was $200-$300 a month, which he paid, but does finding out he's working only two days a month to make it change our agreement? -- TOOK IN A LOST PUPPY IN HAWAII
DEAR TOOK: May I point out that when you took this "puppy" in, it wasn't so he'd be sleeping on your couch but in the spare room? He shouldn't be using YOUR living room or YOUR couch for sleeping.
Because you put this freeloader on the lease -- for what reason, I cannot fathom -- you may need an attorney to get him out of there. Rather than working two days a month to pay that minuscule amount of rent to you, he should be driving enough hours to accumulate a down payment on a place of his own. To say that your kindness has been taken advantage of is an understatement.