‘Suck s***’: House mate’s ‘greedy’ act divides opinion

A Sydney renter has come under fire for a cunning move that’s allowed them to live rent free, but others claim it’s perfectly justified.

Sydney rents have increased 30 per cent over the past year. Picture: Gaye Gerard

A tenant who has been living rent free by subletting rooms to house mates got more than they bargained for when turning to social media for advice.

The renter based in Sydney’s inner west explained on a Facebook group page for house mates in the area that they sublet the property to four other house mates and the tenant lease was up for renewal.

The tenant had been the sole leaseholder for the property for two years but the subletters had indicated they wanted to be on the new lease.

“The issue I have is that I have not been very transparent about the relative rental contributions and my rent is actually entirely covered by them. How do I go about navigating this situation,” the post read.

The “head” tenant’s request for advice was immediately slammed when re-posted on another page titled Australian Green Memes for Actually Progressive Teens.

With close to 1800 comments on the post, many were severely critical of the move.

One person commenting on the social media page said it was immoral.

“Lol suck shit,” she said. “I sublet … and I split it up somewhat evenly based on how much space everyone gets. I could probably get double for those rooms and cover most of my rent but I couldn’t live with myself … I absolutely can’t stand rent seeking scum.”

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Some respondents said the move was “greedy” even if it was legal.

Another commentator proposed a solution for the other house mates in the house.

“I once had someone do this to me and a few others,” he said. “We all moved out on the same day without notice and he had to move out soon after as he couldn’t pay the rent.”

Others were more sympathetic. “I actually don’t think he has done much wrong,” one commentator said.

“If he advertised the rooms at whatever price and it was accepted by the tenants, then they have already accepted it as a fair exchange.

“Home owners rent out rooms or dual living and have the potential to cover their mortgage but (are) not held to the same moral standard.”

Another social media user said the house mate was justified in getting subletters to pay more as they were taking on more risk by have their name on the original lease.

“Reasonable is charging more to cover the extra risk you’re taking on. If people can’t figure that out for themselves that’s on them,” the user said.

It comes as Sydney continues to grapple with a rental crisis. Figures published Monday by SQM Research showed rents are currently about 30 per cent higher than they were at the start of 2022.

There are also about half as many properties available for tenants than a year ago, with reopened international borders putting additional pressure on the rental market.

Under NSW law, renters who sublet their properties are free to charge market prices, but the share of landlords who normally agree to subletting requests remains low.

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Originally published as ‘Suck s***’: House mate’s ‘greedy’ act divides opinion