Roommate Sublets Against Lease: AITA for Asking Them to Move Out?

A 28-year-old woman refused to keep playing nice with a roommate who decided the lease rules were optional. And honestly, once the landlord called, it stopped being a “private roommate issue” and turned into a full-on housing risk.

She and her 25-year-old male roommate split a two-bedroom apartment evenly, everything was fine, until a routine inspection revealed a stranger living in their unit. The lease clearly says subletting is not allowed without written landlord consent, but the roommate had been quietly subletting his room to a friend, then tried to justify it by saying he needed the extra money.

Now she’s wondering if she went too far by telling him to move out immediately.

Original Post

So I'm (28F) currently living with a roommate (25M) in a two-bedroom apartment. We split the rent and utilities evenly, and things have been fine until recently.

We had a good relationship, or so I thought. For background, our lease explicitly states that subletting is not allowed without prior written consent from the landlord.

Last week, I received a call from our landlord, informing me that they discovered someone else living in our apartment when they came for a routine inspection. Upon investigating further, I found out that my roommate had been subletting his room to a friend without my knowledge.

This not only violates our lease but also poses a safety and security risk to the apartment. When I confronted my roommate about this, he admitted to subletting without informing me, claiming he needed the extra money to cover personal expenses.

I was shocked and felt betrayed by his lack of respect for our living arrangement and the potential consequences it could bring. I told him that I could no longer live with someone who would jeopardize our housing situation and put us at risk of legal action from the landlord.

I asked him to find alternative living arrangements as soon as possible. He got defensive, saying I was overreacting and that he had no other place to go.

He tried to guilt-trip me into letting him stay, but I stood my ground. So, AITA for asking my roommate to move out after discovering he sublet our apartment against the lease?

I feel like I have a right to enforce the terms of our lease and protect our living situation, but he seems to think I'm being unreasonable.

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It’s like the AITA fight in refusing to sign a joint lease after a partner plans a secret sublet.

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The landlord’s call after the inspection is what turns this from awkward roommate drama into a potential lease disaster for OP and her roommate.</p>

When OP confronts her roommate and he admits the sublet without telling her, the “we had a good relationship” storyline instantly falls apart.</p>

His argument that he needed the extra money to cover personal expenses does not magically erase the fact that the lease forbids subletting.</p>

Even the guilt-tripping doesn’t work, because OP is not willing to gamble her housing situation on his plan to keep living there.</p>

Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments section.

He might be happier paying for his own place, because OP is done risking their lease for his side hustle.

Wondering whether to amend the lease after your roommate’s secret sublet, read this.