22-year-old brother asks 27-year-old homeowner sister to stay at her place, she agrees only if he pays rent, he refuses: ‘You're trying to profit off your own brother’

Author image for Bar Mor Hazut
Bar Mor Hazut • Senior Editor
Aug 11, 2025 4:00 PM EDT

When you ask someone for a favor, and they accept with a few conditions, maybe you shouldn't insult them and their entire family if you don't like said conditions. By all means, no one is forcing you to agree, but at the end of the day, they are doing you a favor, they are agreeing to help, and you shouldn't make them feel bad if they can't agree to it exactly how you expected them to.

Take the brother in the story below, for example. He asked his sister if he could stay at her place for a few months, and she agreed, but only if he helped around the house and contributed financially by paying a $200 monthly rent. Seems reasonable, don't you think?

Well, apparently, the brother didn't find this reasonable at all, but instead of respectfully saying that to his sister and telling her he would find another arrangement, he completely turned on her. He called her greedy and cold and accused her of trying to profit off him. Then, he turned the entire family against her.

Is that an extreme reaction towards someone who was trying to help? Keep scrolling to read the full story and let us know what you think.

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  • 01
    Cheezburger Image 10539218176
    via RDNE Stock project

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • 02

    AITA for refusing to let my brother live in my apartment for free just because we're family ?

    I (27F) bought a small apartment two years ago with my own money and a mortgage I'm still paying off. I live alone and worked
    via mia_donnelly
  • 03
    really hard to be independent. My younger brother(22M) just finished school and asked if he could crash at
    via mia_donnelly
  • 04
    my place "for a few months." I said okay, but if he helped with utilities and groceries (like 200$/month tops) and respected a few
    via mia_donnelly
  • 05
    basic rules (clean up after yourself, no loud guests every night, etc). he completely lost it. Saidl was greedy, cold, and
    via mia_donnelly
  • 06
    "treating family like strangers." He told our relatives I was trying to "profit off my own brother;" and now I'm getting texts
    via mia_donnelly
  • 07
    from our aunts and cousins telling me I'm heartless. I'm honestly just trying to protect my space and
    via mia_donnelly
  • 08
    peace. I don't think asking for basic respect and a bit of help with costs makes me an a hole. AITA?
    via mia_donnelly
  • 09
    Roommate Agreement document
    via Hailshadow

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • 10
    kjlo78 NTA. Your brother is an adult and if $200 and basic manners is too much for him, good luck finding somewhere better. Why don't the relatives offer him their place?
    via kjlo78
  • 11
    mia_donnelly OP Exactly! Thats what I've been thinking too, if it's so "heartless" of me to not let him stay for free, why hasn't anyone else opened their doors? what really frustrates me is that I've helped him before. I helped pay for his laptop when he
    via mia_donnelly
  • 12
    started university, and he stayed with me during holidays without me asking for a cent. But this time, I made it clear it wouldn't be a short visit, he said "a few months" and knowing him, that could easily turn into half a year or more. I just can't carry everything on my back while he treats my home like a free hostel.
    via mia_donnelly
  • 13
    And 200$ isn't even rent, it's literally to cover the spike in bills and food. He eats like a black hole and leaves his stuff everywhere,. I didn't think asking for a little help and respect was unreasonable, but apparently that makes me the villain now. Thanks for saying this really. It's been making me second-guess myself a lot.
    via mia_donnelly
  • 14
    slap_ya Think of the positives - He's shown himself to be an a h le that you would never want to live with without the hassle of having him live with you and the eventual eviction you would have to do.
    via slap_ya
  • 15
    mia_donnelly OP True, better to find out now than after six months of stress and passive- aggressive notes on the fridge
    via mia_donnelly
  • 16
    celticmusebooks Spoiler alert-- he was planning on staying a LOT longer than a couple of months. Tell all of the relatives sending you nastygrams that you'll let your brother know that they are willing to house him for free.
    via celticmusebooks
  • 17
    mia_donnelly OP You're probably right, I was already getting "it's just until I get on my feet "vibes, which we all know can turn into a full lease. And yep, I did actually tell a few of the relatives who texted me that I'm happy to pass his
    via mia_donnelly
  • 18
    number along so they can host him instead, suddenly it go real quiet. The funny part is, he has other options. Our parents live in 30 minutes away and have a spare room. He just didn't want to move back in with them because they'd "treat him like a kid
    via mia_donnelly
  • 19
    again" (his words). Apparently I'm the cool compromise... if I also shut up, clean up, and pay for everything. Thanks for backing me up, this whole situation had me second-guessing my boundaries for a minute.
    via mia_donnelly
  • 20
    Tight_Jaguar_3881 Op will regret letting his entitled brother move in. He will take over, move in a girlfriend and still expect to pay nothing.
    via Tight_Jaguar_3881
  • 21
    mia_donnelly OP That's exactly the nightmare scenario I was picturing when he asked. Honestly, I wouldn't even be surprised if a girlfriend showed up two weeks in like, "Heyyyy, thanks for letting us stay
    via mia_donnelly

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