Friends Blasted for Expecting 'Free' 4-Week Stay at Couple's New Home

A Mumsnet user has been backed online for refusing to let her "dim-witted" friends stay in her cottage for free.

In a post to the AIBU (Am I Being Unreasonable?) forum on 8 August, user TitaniasA** explained her predicament. She and her partner have purchased a cottage in Wales, and are planning to relocate. However, the buyer of their current home had to drop out of the sale at the last minute.

She wrote: "We found and bought the perfect cottage, quiet location but close to lots of amenities in the next town. It's by the coast with a sea view.

"Our buyers for our current house in England have pulled out today (for very genuine reasons).

"We got the keys to our cottage last week so we now have two houses, which we were going to take the hit for a month before moving."

To make ends meet, the couple has decided to rent out their cottage until they can find a new buyer for their house. After explaining their plan to friends over lunch, the pair said they would use the cottage for a vacation—but only if they didn't have to pay for it.

"[They] did a kind of 'yay free holidays' high five which totally shocked me," she said.

"I did explain that we would be renting it out [because] we wouldn't be able to do it for free.

"They both seem to think that this is totally unreasonable but I think it's really rude to assume. Am I being a tight a***?"

A 2017 survey by the Bank of America found that money was a common stressor among friends. 44 percent of participants said money had a larger impact on their friendships than social media or age differences, with only 50 percent comfortable talking to their friends about money.

More than half have ended a friendship over money owed, but 48 percent said asking their friend to pay up makes them uncomfortable. However, this fear of confrontation can lead to "forever IOUs," with three-quarters of those surveyed never getting their cash back.

One in five borrowers admit to avoiding friends they owe money to, whether that's ignoring their calls or blocking them on social media. Unsurprisingly, this behavior makes them unpopular, with 64 percent saying they'd least like to go to dinner with a friend who's a "moocher."

In the comments, TitaniasA** said she'd offered her friends a discount, but that she couldn't afford for them to stay for free.

"We absolutely do need the money," she added.

"I would give them 'mates rates' but they both meant going separately with their partners for a couple of weeks so that would potentially be 4 weeks.

"They both seemed to think I was being out of order and I felt s*** when I came home."

Mumsnet users agreed that the woman's friends were rude to assume they could stay at the cottage for free.

"Your so-called friends are being very presumptuous," wrote thefizz.

"Do they not realise that their 'free' holiday would be costing you money?!" said name30455.

LeroyJenkinssss agreed, writing: "The only reason you're renting it out is to lessen the financial impact?? Your friends are a bit dim witted and selfish - it's not free, you would be essentially paying for them to stay."

While Isthisit22 commented: "Don't rent to them at all. They will not pay, not treat it with respect or mess you around in some other way. They have shown your their true colours now, don't trust them."

TitaniasA** isn't the only one to fall out with friends over real estate. Another Mumsnet user was recently bashed for refusing to pay her share of a holiday rental, while a Redditor was praised for kicking out her "disrespectful" best friend who had been living in her apartment for free for years.