The obvious problem with winning a dirtiest apartment contest is that you would have had to have lived through the type of genuine filth that leads to such a title. Would it be worth it if the prize was $1,000? That probably depends on your financial situation and feelings about tetanus.

The scariest part is, Paul17 in Waterford, N.Y. isn't even winning:



After the jump, take a look at what more of the finalists in MyApartmentMap's $1,000-grand-prize "Dirtiest Apartment" contest put up with to position themselves for the crown.

Some people (Mahdroo in West Hollywood, Calif.) can take pride in anything.


This is what happens when you never put stuff away, Messy Jessie in Brooklyn, N.Y.


We can't even tell which room of JKeegan's Lowell, Mass., home this is supposed to be.


Click here for more of the finalists' squalid abodes and a chance to vote on who you think is the filthiest filth-monger. (Contest ends July 24.)

From the Web:
15 Words That Sound Dirty But Aren't (Lemondrop)
Is The World's Dirtest Apartment In Houston (Holy Taco)