Real-life MMD: If I'm paying rent, why should I tidy my room?

irritable

The standards set by the owner of the property apply throughout the house. It is therefore entirely your responsibility to act in accordance with those standards. It isn't your place as a rent-payer to deviate from those standards.
Additionally, your actions at 24 should demonstrate those which you intend to take through the rest of your life. If you are planning on being untidy and dis-organised then you are run the risk of being an eternal let-down to your parents, who have no doubt attempted to bring you up to be a decent human being.
So, quit your whining and get on with organising your room in a fashion acceptable to your parents and continue to maintain the highest achievable standards of organisational hygiene.
Based on the fact that you have dared to even ask the question, you have clearly not yet absorbed the learning necessary for you to be considered to be an 'adult'.

juggsy

You're 24 but frankly sound like a petulant child. Sounds like you and your parents would be better off if you moved out, hopefully you'll gain a bit of maturity and self-sufficiency by getting your own space. If it costs little more, why not make the leap? I suspect because your parents do more than you're willing to admit, which is why I think it's fair for your parents to have a say in this.

Lehop

Buy a small lock. This is your space. I never cleaned my boys' rooms unless they were on holiday when I would give a good clean. They then came home full of praise and thanks - they had a clean room, and I'd got rid of any frustration. I think we all clean our own mess when it suits us, it's other people's mess that annoys us

JayD

My son is 37 years old and needed to stay with us when he was between houses. We agreed on a decent contribution towards his keep etc but I still wanted him to keep his room reasonably clean and tidy.

Like your parents, this was our home and - and like my son, you wont be living there forever. They have a right to expect you to maintain the standards of cleanliness that they prefer in their home. I think you should respect that. If you truly find it unbearable, then pay that little bit extra and rent a room elsewhere.

pb8770

When you live with someone, in your case your parents you stick by their rules. fair enough you could get a place of your own for a few quid extra per week but have you factored in the council tax, heating, lighting and not forgetting food, you will be paying only a fraction of running a household. Its about time you did as you were told or that place of your own will become a reality very soon. Once you get a place of your own you can do whatever you want so until then stop sulking and get that room cleared :eek:

Reetrob

When my two offspring were teenagers I gave them the option of keeping their rooms reasonably tidy or me tidying them for them - by dropping their belongings out of the window. Nothing was ever dropped out of the window.

pob100

I think what's missing here is that your relationship with your parents cannot be ignored and so this dilemma cannot simply be reduced down to a commercial dispute. Drawing parallels with a typical landlord-tenant relationship seems unhelpful, as their attempts to get you to clean up around the house are likely to have more complex motivations, such as your well-being and self discipline. Neither you, nor your parents can buy or sell their way out of these responsibilities and obligations.

ivanbrownbear

I think this is just an excuse your dad is using to say "please go"! Look at it from their point of view. You are 24. Old enough to look after yourself. Go out and get a life and let them have their's back.

rossss

Man up, grow up, and stop crying for attention.

You're 24, not 14, you don't need to come on here looking for people to back you up so you feel better about arguing with mummy and daddy, if you don't like the situation, move out, make your own meals, do all your own laundry, and pay your own electricity and water, otherwise, deal with it.

If you move into another place with a landlord, the landlord will still set rules, if you don't abide by them, you're out. Your parents have set the rule that your room is tidy, they're also letting you live with them for less than another landlord would, keeping your room tidy is a pretty small rule that's easy to stick to.

A lot of people would bend over backwards for a chance to live life like that, stop complaining like a grumpy teenager.

economically_challenged

You seem to say this with both pride and petulance. What will you do with hubris, when you discover what that is?

Of course you should tidy your room. One day, you may want to live with someone who doesn't like rooms that are an 'organised mess' and can't stand rooms that are tips. Or, put another way, when you are head of your own household, you can live in as disorganised or tidy a way as you wish.

Seriously though, I suspect that what you would lose, in renting a smaller room for slightly more money, would be more than you think (besides, where would you keep all that stuff?).

You'll hate it when you do tidy up though, you won't be able to find anything. Although I'm not sure whether this is a kind of catch-22 or a variant on Sod's Law.