Should I be offering “services” for a discount on rent?
A short guide on how to safely get a discount on your rent.
Disclaimer. I’m writing this guide because this already most likely is common behaviour in many parts of the world. in the Netherlands the waiting list for social rent exceeds 6 years outside of the big cities. In many countries the situation is similar or worst. I would not recommend engaging in this unless you’re comfortable doing so or see no other option.
Is it legal to get help when things go south?
Make sure engaging in outside mariage relationships and paid intercourse is legal in your country. And if there are sufficient legal protections for rape, etc.
If You engage in these actions without these laws the step to full on exploitation is to hard too resist for any true capitalist. You won’t be able to escape or start any legal action when abuse occurs.
am i in control?
you’re already at a disadvantage economically. so you’ll have to have a few safeguards.
- Physical strength. if you’re unable to properly punch your landlord in the face you might want to reconsider. although in most places he’ll won’t be able to legally enter your home without permission. it will still be relatively easy. so you will need to know that you will have physical control to take off the risk of physical threats.
- Backup, if things turn south. you’ll need to have a backup plan. do you have a source of food if the extra money dries up? for example in my situation a nearby Aldi with canned tomato sauce and spaghetti. you’ll also need to have access to basic emergency living if your contract will be terminated or other incidents occur. for example a room at your parent’s house or a reliable friend’s couch.
- Never give the landlord your keys or offer unlimited entrance to your living space, this includes the expectation that he/she will be let in whenever she/he wants to.
- Make sure no footage of you engaging in this exists ever. don’t send photographical or video material, unless you really know this won’t hurt your career or perception. expect that every image you’ll ever send will be visible to everyone as soon as you send it. because it will.
- Make sure that you’re able to say no, both mentally and physically.
- Make sure you know what economic and psychological options he/she has to profit off of you if he or she would want to.
- Be careful of the boiling frog syndrome. don’t go further and further without reflection.
- Don’t use substances. stay in control.
Payment.
Don’t and do not ever pay less from your rent if that’s not physically noted in a legal contract. If he/she pays you for your services, ask it in cash (but do not store large amounts of cash in your house). it will be hard to add your “services” into a legal contract in most places, but if he/she expects exceedingly innovating actions it will still be really useful to write down how far you’re willing to go and get his/her signature legally in case you want to proof in court that you in fact did not consent.
Ask for immediat payment. don’t wait, don’t take excuses. you’ll never be able to get any payment legally if he/she decides not to.
Mental health.
If You’ve been exploited in the past or had bad experiences it’s important to reflect and see if you could see this happen again. If the answer is “maybe” or “yes”. just don’t.
If the actions take a toll on your mental health or self value. do not engage in them, stop them.
First step.
If you want to engage in these actions. make sure that it’s appreciated and won’t hurt your image. if i for example rent in a large cooperation it won’t be appreciated by higher ups if you’d engage in this with rent collectors. even if the particular person in question might be okay with it. it might also be expected that you’ll frequently engage in this behaviour or may be interpreted as a threat or creepy behaviour. so make sure you know your landlord.
Dirt.
If you receive any pictures or other proof of unacceptable social behaviour from your landlord, store it in multiple cloud services (drop box, google drive, apple icloud, etc). both native to your device and not native. your landlord will never be able to find all of it and remove if from all these services. this can be used both as proof and as leverage if things turn south. just make sure to not use it to exploit it for money as this will make legal action a lot easier compared to just leaking it or using it as court material or action against a cooperation he or she is employed in. (but know that he/she will also be able to do the same to you)
lastly.
If you think you can pull ALL OF THIS off safely, good luck to you.
make sure to leave feedback below. if this was useful you might also want to watch this: link.
happy renting: Bernhard.
