These days, it is sometimes necessary to lend a helping hand to relatives and friends by inviting them to stay over at your apartment until they can get back on your feet again. However, you must consider quite a few things when you do decide to give a hand.
Will the landlord allow it?
It would be best to inform your landlord about your friends or relatives temporarily staying over. Some apartment homes and low-cost housing may have specific rules on how many people can stay in the unit for extended amounts of time. Not only that, it would also allay fears about subletting (which may be disallowed).
Costs
There’s also the matter of costs. If you want to know how much their stay will affect your monthly expenses, divide the utility costs by the number of people in your unit. Add that figure to your monthly utility costs, to get an idea of how much more you will have to pay. You can use this as a base price for how much you can charge the aside from charging the difference between the month they weren’t in the unit and when they were already living in. We’re not even talking about food expenses at this point. It’s always a good idea to ask for even a token payment while they are staying over.
Space and time
Space is a concern, particularly for housing apartments for rent. And related to that is how long they will stay.
Space is answered easily enough: you will have to think about your own need for privacy and peace of mind. No matter how close you with your friends or relatives, be aware that friction will still be an issue, simply because there are more people in the unit.
Time, on the other hand, may be out of your hands – it may depend on your landlord or your lease agreement. Even if it isn’t, put it down in writing as to how long they are staying. That way, possible bruised feelings can be avoided.
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