One of the things I have hated is dealing with financial issues. In particular, those with roommates/housemates. Statiscally, money is one the greatest causes of arguments and the ends of relationships.

Money is a sign of power in some way. I may see those trivial dollars as mine, but perhaps they really belong to you. And because of this very struggle of power, we can\’t ever see on the same plane.

So what I am dealing with now is how to manage the \”damage\” we are going to receive if everyone moves out of this house in May. I had one person from the management company come and take a look. They took a glance and said that we would definitely be charged for carpet cleaning. Around $150. She didn\’t do a good job of walking through the house, so screw that.

Let me explain my situation. This is the third year that this house would be rented out. There have been a number of changes in roommates. This house was one of those pass down from housemate to housemate. So the previous roommates (approximately 7 people not including their significant others) have pretty much received their full security deposit back except for two of them. Is it bad to go back and contact all 7 telling them they\’ll have to pay for damages that cannot be indicated? Of course, it was someone\’s fault for do a thorough walkthrough when everyone left. But hey, isn\’t it really unfair that no matter what will happen the carpet will be charged for cleaning?! Like seriously, how can anyone keep the carpet spotless? fdjlsdfjlsdf

The last place I lived in Berkeley, the management was anal and charged my roommate and myself a significant portion of our rent to cover carpet cleaning, blinds cleaning, dusting, oven cleaning, bathroom cleaning…despite the fact that we had cleaned…a lot. However, the first apartment I lived at, the landlord was a slacker and didn\’t do a walkthrough when we moved out. There were several points of damage there, yet he gave the three of us our full security deposit.

I am more apt to just sacrifice. To have less trouble. I do insist on things, but to deal with bad relationships is worse than losing money.

At the end of these things, is it better to stress over a missing (hypothetical) trivial $400 for months (perhaps in court) or just let it go? Better things in life than to whine about money, right? It seems to be the principle, but unlike most people, I always keep at least $1000 in my bank account for unexpected charges and hidden fees like these.