Brother Moving In?

Thanks for the post from Sylvester Campbell

My brother has been driving me crazy about moving into my spare room, so much so I’m actually considering it. He’s only 20 and he’s so wild, I’m not sure if I want to bring that kind of energy into my house. But I did buy this place at the height of the market and my mortgage is a strain on me financially. It would be nice to have someone else’s money helping to pay the bills and I know my parents would help me keep him in line if he became a terrible roommate! Anyway, I’ve had him looking into electric companies in dallas because if he moves here he’s going to have to pay all the utilities as well as a little bit of rent. I know he doesn’t make a ton of money at his job and he’s just starting out. The whole point of him moving into my place is to save up money and have a shorter commute - it could be an arrangement that could really work for both of us, I think. The problem is that my brother’s never been the most responsible so I’m already starting to worry about him forgetting to pay the utilities and generally just being a nuisance: leaving the door unlocked, being loud, not letting the dog out when he gets home from work. Before he moves in I’m going to have to have a long, serious conversation with him about my expectations and about the rules of the house. I know it sounds silly because he’s a grown adult and I hate to have to lay down the law on him in this way but we’re just very different! I love my brother, I really do, but sometimes I worry that if he doesn’t grow up soon he’s going to have a long road ahead of him. Maybe living with me will be a good influence on him and some of my maturity will rub off on him.