We have been renting my friends house for the last five years approximately . In the summer last year we gave notice to move and my Friend and their partner were disappointed as they had been in the process or remortgaging it. It’s their retirement nest egg. We pay the going rate. Always on time. My partner and I had a significant bereavement and we changed my mind about moving. I could barely leave the house let alone move and at that point I couldn’t imagine moving at all. My Friend and his partner were super pleased and relieved we decided to stay because they didn’t want to sell yet and didn’t want any more tenants because the ones they had before us cost them a fortune in unpaid rent and damage to the property. Our son has now bought a house for us because he wants us to be house secure and lower our costs to enjoy retirement. It is such a wonderful gesture. He is a wonderful young man.. Here’s where I wonder AITA? My Friend has remortgaged his investment and we now have to tell him that we are leaving after all. He has another property he has had to put on the market and was really stressed and unhappy about the redecorating of the property and the whole process and I am anticipating he won’t be impressed when I tell him we will be moving only 6 months after we told him we would be staying. AITA? I’ll be honest the prospect of the actual logistics of the move fills me with dread but the financial freedom of only paying utility bills will be life changing. AITA
NTA Life is just like that sometimes, you never know what is going to happen. Enjoy your new home!
NTA
6 months is a long time. It’s not 6 weeks.
If your friend is actually a friend, they will be happy for you. Your son is extremely generous and that was really awesome of him to buy you a house.
Congratulations OP 👏❤️
YWNBTA as long as you’re fulfilling the terms of the rental agreement in terms of move-out-notice etc, which it sounds like you are. The guilt you’re feeling is an illustration of the potential downside of mixing friendship with business/financial relationships. In this case, the landlord presuming on the friendship to do things he wouldn’t do with a regular tenant, i.e. pressure them not to move out. \[EDIT Or the tenant feeling an obligation not to move out that he wouldn’t feel with a regular landlord. It’s not clear in this post how much pressure is coming from the friend/landlord, and how much OP is just putting it on themselves.\]
EDIT 2 FFS there is critical info in the bot response that OP left out of the main post. Namely that when they canceled the move-out he *told the friend he would stay for years,* and the friend made a big financial decision based on this. I don’t know, it’s a mess.
NTA. Here’s the thing – your friend wasn’t doing you any favors. You pay market rate and are good tenants. You have the opportunity to save money for retirement thanks to your lovely son. I see no reason to be concerned about upsetting your “friend” over a business transaction. Why is it okay for him to rely on YOU for HIS retirement security. Worry about your family and let that person worry about his.
NTA. They will find another tenant.
NTA. It isn’t your job to maintain their income. They have a choice to sell or rent to someone else. Also, that was incredibly nice of your son.
NTA. Having a rental property comes with risks, such as your friend who has been a great tenant and who pays market rate rent having reason to move and having to replace your friend with a less reliable tenant. If your friend is so reliant on you being the tenant, she should be offering consideration for you to stay (i.e., you earn an interest in the sale proceeds; you pay less than market rate)
NTA
Would your friend live in rented accommodation instead of living in their own home just to make your life easier?
Sounds silly when you read it, eh?
Meet them for coffee and tell them that you’re really excited with the new home your son is buying you. If they are really your friend they’ll be happy for you.
NTA
As a tenant, you’re doing nothing a wrong as long as you’re meeting the terms of your agreement in good faith. As a friend, he should be happy for you.
It will inconvenience him the same way any landlord is inconvenienced by a vacancy, but it sounds like he’s gone without being inconvenienced for 5 years. A sane landlord would take that as a W.
Ntah If your friend isn’t anything but happy for you, you might need to rethink the friendship. Because it might be just finally beneficial to be “friends” with you. It’s not like they’re doing you a favor, you pay market rent which means you are basically paying their mortgage on the property. Just like any other landlord they have to find new tenants when one moves out.
NTA. Explain your windfall to your friends and be sure to leave their place in IMMACULATE condition when you finally move out.
NTA. It’s a business transaction, regardless of friendship. If your friend gets so stressed about redecorating etc then they’re in the wrong game. It’s a business that too many amateurs think should just be easy money and who see tenants as an irritant rather than what they are – customers paying the bills.
If they’re more concerned about their income than your friendship then I would question whether they are actually a friend.
NTA – You didn’t tell him how long you’d be staying right? 6 months is you staying. You can’t stay to please them, they are thinking of themselves. You think of you.
NTA You are NOT responsible for your friend’s investments and choices. There are MANY things that could have happened outside of your control OR friend’s control that could have impacted their finances. Why should you put your friend’s happiness or security above your own? You shouldn’t. And a real friend wouldn’t expect you to.