From Shared Living in the USA to $100 Rent in Egypt: 8 plus roommates at anytime 🤯😅

Before I moved to Hurghada, Egypt 🇪🇬, I had a very different living situation back in the USA. Think… hostel-style shared living, but booked through Airbnb. At first, I loved it.

I had the best roommate ever (we literally shared a room). To this day, we follow each other on social media and still keep in touch. This wasn’t my first time living like this either — in 2017, I stayed in a crash pad for flight attendants, and the setup was exactly the same: bunk beds, shared rooms, shared everything.

When the Honeymoon Phase Ends

The first year was great. Then year two happened.

I became the house manager for free rent — which meant running the house, changing sheets, and keeping common areas clean. The Airbnb owner (who later became a friend) had high standards, and I wanted to keep the place looking perfect.

But then came… poop in the shared restroom, rude guests, and a whole lot of cleaning I didn’t sign up for. Eventually, I my time as house manager came to an end and I moved to another shared house.

The Bed Bug Incident I’ll Never Forget

At the new house, the owner asked me to manage it in exchange for free rent. I said yes.

That’s when I met her. A lady who never showered or bathed. I finally asked the owner to remove her from the house— which he did. But when I went to change her sheets… there they were.

Large. Crawling. Bed bugs. Everywhere. 🤯 I will spare you the pictures 😅.

We finally understood why she slept on top of a garbage bag. That moment goes down as one of my wildest house manager stories — and trust me, I have plenty more.

When Shared Living Took a Toll

After a while, living like this started affecting my mental health. I eventually stopped being a house manager and just rented beds.

In Texas, I bounced around a few more shared houses before moving to Florida. I still didn’t want to sign a lease, so I found another Airbnb shared living situation in Florida. Eventually, the owner let me rent the entire bedroom — no roommates, just me. 🙌🏾

The Good, The Bad, and The Beautiful

Living this way wasn’t all bad. Like the one time we had a pink Barbie themes party, or movie night and one of our roommates did a food delivery order and they didn’t answer so we got a huge order of snacks for free, or the baby shower we threw for a first time expecting mother who was living in the USA from Peru.

I met so many wonderful people from all walks of life — and a few… very unique personalities.

Would I do it again? Probably not. But I wouldn’t change that season of my life. It taught me resilience, flexibility, and gratitude.

Now, when you see me living my dream life by the Red Sea in Hurghada, Egypt, just know — I had some wild living situations before this paradise. And I’m making the absolute best of it.