Basically I have been living with 4 other girls for 2 years in university. We all got along well and I feel like we never had any huge issues. We are all leaving the apartment next year because they are graduating (I have another year left).
At the start of this year one of the roommates moved out taking her couches with her. the living room was pretty bare and I was under a the impression we all wanted a couch. I found a nice couch on facebook marketplace it was 250$ total so 50$/ person. I ran it by the roomates and one of them asked if at the end of the year would they get their 50$ back. I thought this was slightly petty but agreed to it (maybe this is where I am in the wrong).
I ended up spending at least 3 hours getting a truck to move the couch, driving down to pick it up from the location, and my father, bf, and bfs dad all helped move it in which was a pain because we have no elevator and live on the 2nd floor.
Throughout the entire year the couch has been used. (So it is not in the same condition it was when we got it). It is also to be noted that throughout the year I have supplied way more for the house than I should have. Everyone was using my very nice avocado oil, toilet paper, dish pods. I also was very close to 2 of my roommates and frequently lent them my clothes, food, and overall just done alot for everyone in that house.
Come to the conflict. I told them that as I was moving into another apartment next year i would be keeping the couch. I was honestly really surprised when my roommates basically told me they wanted their 50$ back. I was kind of frustrated because i am in a tight financial situation and just dont have 200$ to “buy their shares out of a used couch”. I told them that I was really shocked they were coming after me for this money considering how much i have done for them all year and I have never asked for a penny back (my contributions = more than 50$ 😂). I told them you basically spent 50$ to be able to use a couch for an entire year that i put all the work into getting.
They ended up insisting I either pay them or they would sell the couch. I talked to my dad and he was totally shocked. He said that in a normal situation they would just say take the used couch which noone else has a use for. I am really hurt that these people I thought were my friends are coming after me and milking me for my last dollar instead of just letting me catch a break and take the couch I found and put the work in to.
I am the kind of person where I would never come back and ask them for that money I would happily just let them take the couch. However since this I have asked for some things back I gave them (clothes) and followed up on stuff they owed me. I told my roommate that I was hurt that this is where her priorities lie and that if our friendship was really only worth 50$ then good riddance.
So AITA
> I told them that I was really shocked
You shouldn’t have been. It was literally mentioned before purchasing they expected their money back.
> They ended up insisting I either pay them or they would sell the couch.
Easy solution.
> I am really hurt that these people I thought were my friends are coming after me and milking me for my last dollar instead of just letting me catch a break and take the couch I found and put the work in to.
Goodness. Overreaction much?
YTA. Look, yes this is absurd but its what y’all agreed to. They aren’t being unreasonable, they are just going along with what they thought was the agreement.
Technically YTA, because you said you would pay them. I would let them sell the couch, if it sells, split it 5 ways. Chances are, they won’t go through the effort and you’ll be forced to move the couch. Sometimes, the way to win is by doing nothing
NTA for getting your stuff back is normal. Get your reimbursements.