Renting your extra room: is it worth?

Is it worth it to rent your extra room?

I grew up in a big family, and holidays were often spent in cramped houses, where all the kids would be sharing a huge dormitory, and we would seldom shower. Then I moved on to campus housing, shoebox apartments and having between two and seven roommates. Every time I have lived on my own I have taken on couchsurfers or received a lot of visits.

To me, giving up a room in my apartment to get a roommate or rent it to travelers is not a huge sacrifice. I can work around people’s schedule, and if you take a shower in the morning, I can shower at night, or before you wake up. To some, that would be unbearable.

Pros to renting your extra room

• You get rent money!!

• If you rent long term you have a roommate to watch your pet or water your plants if you travel

• You share the utility bills

• If you rent short term you meet travelers from all over the world.

Cons to renting your extra room

• You can’t use the room for storage or as a guestroom anymore

• You have to share common space like the bathroom and kitchen with roommates

• You may not get along well with some

• Travelers can leave a dirty room if you rent short term

• You have less privacy in your home

For me the pros ($$$!!) offset the cons. It may not be your case. You can try by putting up your room on Airbnb or such sites, and rent it to travelers by the night. If you don’t like it, just unsubscribe. If you do, keep going, or look for a roommate for the long term.

Sometimes I wish I wouldn’t have roommates, but most of the time they’re nice to have around, and I couldn’t live in such a nice flat on my own, so I’d have to go back to a 210 sqft apartment, no thanks!