Our neighbor and friend asked to borrow my trailer this weekend, and I politely declined by telling him that I don't lend the trailer out to anyone unless I'm also lending myself out (to hookup, drive, strap things in appropriately etc.). Instead, I took the trip with him and all is well. He understood my stance and was thankful for the assistance.

But it got me to wondering about lending habits.

I think for me, I'll lend out "rough and tumble" things to close friends. Stuff that isn't prone to breakage. So, all non-powered yard equipment (shovels, tarps etc.) are good to go. Similarly, non-powered construction items are able to leave my barn for a bit.

Specialty items (e.g. high end woodworking items), very expensive home items (e.g. commercial grade zero turn mower, trailer), and items that could cause serious harm to the user (e.g. chain saw) are items that I would not lend out easily (with perhaps the exception of my own dad, and my one brother in law who is very capable).

When I do lend things out, I generally prefer to lend for a specific and known period of time. And, I'm definitely evaluating the borrower based on how they return the item... a socket set returned in disarray probably means I'm less likely to lend to you in the future. Although that happens quietly in my mind rather than embarrassing the borrower.

I have not been asked to borrow money yet, but I think if I could afford to lend it and never see it again, I would give to a close friend / family in need (within reason).

So, I'm curious... how do you lend things?