My Roommate Stole the Rent Money—So I Taught Him a Lesson That Can't Be Forgotten

Living with a stranger comes with risks, you never truly know who they are until you share a space. At first, this guy believed his roommate was nice and had everything under control. But that illusion shattered when the landlord knocked on their door, revealing something far more alarming than he ever expected.

He reached out to share his story with us.

Hello Bright Side!

I’m in a bit of a strange spot right now and just need to get this off my chest. My roommate had always been a trustworthy person. One day, our landlord came by. Apparently, he hadn’t been paying the rent for months and hadn’t replied to the notices. “Pay or leave!” said the landlord. I called him, but there was no answer.

I didn’t know what to do. I was desperate when I entered his room and found that almost all of his things were gone. In the room, there were only his books and a few clothes. He used to spend a lot of time staying with friends, so we barely saw each other. But he never took all his stuff when he was away.

Paying the overdue amounts would wipe out my savings. Finally, he texted me, saying “Hey, man, sorry, but I needed the money. My girlfriend and I decided to leave everything behind and travel the world. I had to buy the tickets. My bad! Be at peace.”

I had his parents’ contact information, so I decided to reach out. They told me it wasn’t the first time their son had done this and sent me the money to cover the overdue rent. With their permission, I sold whatever my roommate had left behind and sent the money to help ease his parents’ loss. But I still wasn’t satisfied.

I used his email and cell number to sign him up for every possible spammy, non-refundable travel deal I could find. I wasn’t going to let him have peace on this trip.

A few weeks later, he posted on social media: “I can’t stop getting emails about travel scams! My phone won’t stop ringing with ‘exclusive vacation offers’! What’s happening?” I just replied to him with this: “Hey, man, sorry, but I needed the laugh. My bad! Be at peace.”

Was I wrong for this?

Thanks for reaching out to us with your story. We’ll keep your letter anonymous, and here are our thoughts on your situation.

You did the right thing by not panicking.

You handled the situation well by staying calm and contacting your roommate’s parents. Panicking would have only made things harder, and keeping a clear head helped you find a solution. It’s great that they stepped in, but if they hadn’t, negotiating directly with the landlord (perhaps offering a partial payment plan or finding a replacement tenant quickly) would have been key.

If your name was on the lease along with your roommate's, you might not be solely responsible for the unpaid rent. Some leases include joint liability, but others might allow you to argue that he defaulted on his responsibility. If the lease allowed, you could have asked to remove him and bring in a new roommate ASAP.

Next time, be cautious about who you live with. Maybe have a clearer agreement or even ask for proof of rent payments (like shared receipts) if you’re splitting things.

The biggest takeaway from this should be ensuring you don’t end up in the same mess again. Future roommates should have a clear, agreed-upon system for rent payments. Maybe even requiring them to pay their portion directly to the landlord instead of one person being responsible for both.

Be aware of the negative outcomes if this situation twists.

While revenge is satisfying, making sure you have written proof of his actions can help in case this ever bites you down the road. A quick written note from his parents acknowledging they covered the rent could protect you in case he tries to twist the story later.

If you ever find out where he lands next, a casual heads-up to his new potential roommates or landlords might prevent him from doing this again. While you don’t want to create unnecessary drama, it’s worth letting people know that he bailed on rent. Not in a bitter way, but just a simple, “Hey, if [roommate] ever asks for financial help, just a heads-up that he skipped out on rent and left me with the mess.” This way, he doesn’t pull this on someone else.

We can be close to someone for years and still have no idea what they’re hiding. These people discovered chilling secrets from those they least expected, surely shattering their trust forever.