Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Doesn't matter if they're not friends, they're roommate and adults, if you don't trust the people you're living with to the point you need to lock your stuff to feel safe you should move out. Who wants to live like that?
Doesn't matter if they're not friends, they're roommate and adults, if you don't trust the people you're living with to the point you need to lock your stuff to feel safe you should move out. Who wants to live like that?
There are times when other people are in the house. A locked door would have prevented Mr. Climbs in the Bed with Random People from climbing into the bed. And no, I don't trust anyone. I certainly don't trust strangers. They are roommates. Not friends. Not family. Being an adult doesn't mean much. Not everyone has the same maturity level or level of privacy. I very much like my privacy. I won't even let my dog in the bathroom with me. I don't bug her when she's doing her thing...leave me alone, too.
I certainly think locks seem reasonable, especially after hearing this story, but the frequency that everyone is saying "why didn't you lock your door?" makes me wonder... are locks now common on bedrooms? I've never seen them before.
I've always lived in older houses and all the doors have locks, even the closet in the kitchen. The house I grew in was built in 1966 and that had bedroom locks too
That said I've never used them and I don't even think I closed the bedroom door all the way the only time I had a roommate.
But I would definitely use them in the OPs situation!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by ss20ts
My parents' house was remodeled in the early 70's, and every door on the second floor had a lock. Every house I have owned has had bedroom and bathroom locks. Even my current house does and it was built in 1942! Bedroom locks are NOT a new thing!
Maybe it's a new thing NOT to have them? My house was built in 1926, my last rental was early 1900s
Quote:
Originally Posted by ss20ts
I lock my car in my garage also. My garage is locked as well. So why wouldn't you lock your room when you live with complete strangers who have friends who climb into bed with their tenants?
I live in a fairly safe area and leave my car unlocked in my driveway. My theory is that there's nothing in it to steal and I'd rather have them rummage through it and find nothing rather than break a window and still find nothing. There are places I stay I will not do this though!
I've lived in shared apartments for most of my adult life, in major cities (Boston/Chicago/SF etc..) and never once did my bedroom already have a lock on it when I moved in. In fact, it would have never occurred to me to have one. And if one of my roommates suddenly decided to ?put a lock on her bedroom door, I would be wondering what the heck she was doing in there that she was trying to hide....
I certainly think locks seem reasonable, especially after hearing this story, but the frequency that everyone is saying "why didn't you lock your door?" makes me wonder... are locks now common on bedrooms? I've never seen them before.
I checked with someone who has lived in about a dozen places (mainly apartments but some sororities & fraternities) in recent years and she said that every bedroom door, where she lived, had a lock when she moved in.
Why wouldn't a person lock the room they rent? I own my house and lock every door to my house before I go to bed. What's the difference?
And what does being 30 have to do with it? I've been locking doors since I was a child!
As you said later on, you were talking about exterior doors, well who doesn't lock exterior doors?
And in most places it doesn't take much anyway to get through a locked bedroom door, maybe the OP should put the dresser up against the door every night as well, to feel extra safe.
And being 30 has a lot to do with it. As we age we mature(hopefully) and frat boy nonsense like this should be in the past, if the OP said he moved in with this couple who were 10 years younger than him, than yes expect dumb stuff like this, this couple is actually older than he is....age certainly does matter.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Winchupuata
Doesn't matter if they're not friends, they're roommate and adults, if you don't trust the people you're living with to the point you need to lock your stuff to feel safe you should move out. Who wants to live like that?
Exactly, to use that kind of logic, well stay out of the kitchen when they're in there, they may stab you with a knife. If you don't feel safe where you're living, well that is no way to live.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ss20ts
There are times when other people are in the house. A locked door would have prevented Mr. Climbs in the Bed with Random People from climbing into the bed. And no, I don't trust anyone. I certainly don't trust strangers. They are roommates. Not friends. Not family. Being an adult doesn't mean much. Not everyone has the same maturity level or level of privacy. I very much like my privacy. I won't even let my dog in the bathroom with me. I don't bug her when she's doing her thing...leave me alone, too.
You seem to be under the impression that roommates are non talking strangers. While they may not be friends most people in that situation interact, get to know the people they live with, they may not become best friends and socialize, but they're not strangers who pass in the hallways and don't speak.
I hope you're talking about the exterior doors, because if you mean interior doors then you're a weirdo.
If you're living with adults you shouldn't have to lock your room, that means you obviously don't trust them and in such case, why are you living with them?
Even in college, sharing houses with other college people, I've never locked my rooms, and neither did the the other people. Unless they have absolutely no other choice it's so weird that someone would subject him or herself to live like that.
When I lived with roommates in college, I DID lock the bedroom door.
My college age sons also have locks on their bedroom doors in their houses/apartments. One lives with a combination of friends and random people who answered "Roommates needed" ads, so he did not know some of them at all before they moved in. Seeing as how he has all his personal belongings there, he was not about to leave everything basically available to strangers while he went to class/studied/worked/visited his girlfriend, etc. It's also comforting for him to know that when he is gone for a month (such as over Christmas), he can lock his door (deadbolt with key) and not worry about his computer, iPad, etc.
Quote:
Originally Posted by WouldLoveTo
I live in a fairly safe area and leave my car unlocked in my driveway. My theory is that there's nothing in it to steal and I'd rather have them rummage through it and find nothing rather than break a window and still find nothing. There are places I stay I will not do this though!
I, too, live in a fairly safe area, but I would NEVER leave my car unlocked, even though it's usually empty! That is because my garage door opens via my car's Homelink, and I would basically be giving them a key to my garage/house. Bikes, tools, lawnmower, snowblower, skates, hockey equipment, etc. Plus, if the door between the garage and house was not locked, they'd get access to the house, too.
At night, I always park my car IN the garage. However, depending on who is all home and how many cars are around, I may or may not have a 3rd car parked overnight in the driveway.
I have a detached garage with a project car in it. The garage is locked and I sleep in the bedroom closest to it so I'd hear someone if they tried to break in. As a matter of fact, a few years ago my neighbor broke a glass at night and I called the police thinking someone had broken the window in the side door of the garage.
My GDO remote doesn't work anymore so it's not kept in the car. Nor are any keys. I'd be one of the worst places on the street to get anything of value from. Unless someone wants a couple of 20 year old fat back TVs lol
I've lived in shared apartments for most of my adult life, in major cities (Boston/Chicago/SF etc..) and never once did my bedroom already have a lock on it when I moved in. In fact, it would have never occurred to me to have one. And if one of my roommates suddenly decided to ?put a lock on her bedroom door, I would be wondering what the heck she was doing in there that she was trying to hide....
I certainly think locks seem reasonable, especially after hearing this story, but the frequency that everyone is saying "why didn't you lock your door?" makes me wonder... are locks now common on bedrooms? I've never seen them before.
When I lived in college apartments, the doors all had that (easily breakable) simple lock with a button to push. Even in my house now (in suburbia, USA), the bedroom doors all come with that kind of lock on it--in fact, the house I grew up in, built in the 60s, had them. It would never keep out someone determined to get in, but it slows down someone who was going to enter without thinking.
How else would sulky teenagers scream at their parents and then go lock themselves in their room to play goth music?
They sound incredibly juvenile thoughtless and possibly criminal.
MOVE OUT> get your own place. You're a grown up.
He said the roommates who are friends with this guy have apologized. They don't seem to think it's funny. The guy himself was clearly drunk and was mortified once he was caught, i.e. not malicious. Not to say there is any excuse for going into a dark bedroom at someone else's house, but as others say, he may have thought the bed was empty and just wanted to grab a nap. Let's hope OP doesn't sleep in the nude
If I were OP, I would lock my bedroom door at least whenever the roommates were having a party or people you don't know were there. I still think there is a 99% chance that the intrusion was innocent/thoughtless, not malicious, but still, people don't go into other people's bedrooms at parties without asking, especially after college age. Just lock your bedroom door when someone is there other than your roommates, and ask them to monitor friends they have over when you're not there. If everything else in the living arrangement is working, I would move past this and see it as a chance for all in the apartment to come up with rules about friends being over there.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
. While they may not be friends most people in that situation interact, get to know the people they live with, they may not become best friends and socialize, but they're not strangers who pass in the hallways and don't speak.
