A roommate decided to use their shared living room as a yoga studio three nights a week to make some extra money, leaving the other roommate with no space to use it and no chance to talk about it. 

Is it fair to turn a shared living room into a business when your roommate pays half the rent?

Living with a roommate can get complicated when you don’t respect the other person’s privacy and boundaries. I know how this works because I have one, and we have an awesome relationship. But it wasn’t always fun: we had to get to know each other to build a strong bond when it comes to sharing this apartment. Over time, I realized that to have a roommate who’s a friend, or at least someone you can get along with, respect is the most important ingredient. Otherwise, it won’t work.

If my roommate wanted to make some extra cash by doing some yoga classes at home… I would mind if it got out of control, like it’s happening in the story. Three nights a week of paid yoga classes and my living room full of yoga mats like a studio- that’s a whole other game because it doesn’t let me use the house I’m paying for. It’s not fair for the other roommate to deal with that, especially since she’s not getting any money out of this. 

I’m not saying that the other roommate has to share the money, but some consideration would be nice. I don’t think she realizes how much space she’s using for her yoga classes, and how much it forces the other roommate to stay locked in her room because she can’t get out… Sometimes having a business doesn’t align with living with a roommate.