If you are single, you may choose to have roommates. Sharing a home with one or more friends has both benefits and drawbacks. You’ll pay less in rent and utilities and you’ll always have company, but living with others is not always easy.
Avoid conflicts by discussing everyone’s expectations and decide how to share costs, household responsibilities and living space. While it’s impossible to anticipate every issue that may come up, talking openly ahead of time will set the tone for a smooth living relationship.
Rent
Unless the landlord accepts rent checks or other payment from each person living in the home, you’ll have to decide who will make the payment and what the timeline is for the others to contribute their share. Other things to consider are:
- Whether to divide the rent equally or come up with a formula based on the size of your bedrooms or other factors
- How much notice, if any, must be given if one of you decides to move out before the lease is up
- Whether a departing roommate will be expected to find a replacement
Expenses
In addition to your rent, you will have utility bills as well as other costs to share. Some things to work out include:
- Who will set up service for utilities and be responsible for the monthly payments
- How you all will reimburse the responsible party for utility costs and by what date each month
- How each roommate will pay for the household supplies that you share, such as trash bags, toilet paper and dish soap. Options include reimbursing the roommate who buys the supplies or setting up a fund to which everybody contributes equally.
Food
Depending on your preferences, you can share food and cooking duties, do your own shopping and cooking, or try a combination of the two. Some ways to deal with buying and cooking food are:
- Grocery shop together or take turns shopping. This works best if you have similar diets and consume roughly the same amounts of food.
- Rotate cooking duties. This will streamline mealtime and makes sense for roommates who enjoy the same types of food and have similar schedules. Otherwise you will have to take turns in the kitchen or be able to tolerate more than one person using the kitchen at the same time.
- Everyone buys and prepares their own food. If you do this, you’ll need to label your food and/or designate cupboard and refrigerator space for each roommate.
- Buy and cook your own food, but share condiments and other items that you won’t use up quickly, such as milk, eggs, butter, flour and sugar.
Chores
Not everyone has the same standards when it comes to cleanliness. Avoid disagreements by talking about your expectations. It also helps to describe chores as well as their end results. For example, instead of saying, “do the dishes,” say, “clean, dry and put away dishes immediately after using them.”
Think about:
- Rotating chores or assigning them based on preference
- Using common courtesy, such as emptying the trash when it’s full and not leaving clutter in shared spaces
Guests
Having friends over is another potential source of conflict that should be sorted out before you become roommates. A frequent overnight guest can quickly feel like an extra roommate and strain your relationship. Talk about:
- Whether to set a limit on overnight guests. For example, you might limit overnight guests to four nights per month, per roommate
- How much notice, if any, to give roommates when a guest will be staying over
- Setting a curfew for noise. Loud music, a blaring television or noisy socializing must end by 11:00 on weeknights, for example
When you and your roommates have sorted out the details of your living arrangement, put it in writing. This will help you avoid misunderstandings and start everyone off with a clear understanding of one another’s expectations.
If you are single, you may choose to have roommates. Sharing a home with one or more friends has both benefits and drawbacks. You’ll pay less in rent and utilities and you’ll always have company, but living with others is not always easy.
Avoid conflicts by discussing everyone’s expectations and decide how to share costs, household responsibilities and living space. While it’s impossible to anticipate every issue that may come up, talking openly ahead of time will set the tone for a smooth living relationship.
Rent
Unless the landlord accepts rent checks or other payment from each person living in the home, you’ll have to decide who will make the payment and what the timeline is for the others to contribute their share. Other things to consider are:
- Whether to divide the rent equally or come up with a formula based on the size of your bedrooms or other factors
- How much notice, if any, must be given if one of you decides to move out before the lease is up
- Whether a departing roommate will be expected to find a replacement
Expenses
In addition to your rent, you will have utility bills as well as other costs to share. Some things to work out include:
- Who will set up service for utilities and be responsible for the monthly payments
- How you all will reimburse the responsible party for utility costs and by what date each month
- How each roommate will pay for the household supplies that you share, such as trash bags, toilet paper and dish soap. Options include reimbursing the roommate who buys the supplies or setting up a fund to which everybody contributes equally.
Food
Depending on your preferences, you can share food and cooking duties, do your own shopping and cooking, or try a combination of the two. Some ways to deal with buying and cooking food are:
- Grocery shop together or take turns shopping. This works best if you have similar diets and consume roughly the same amounts of food.
- Rotate cooking duties. This will streamline mealtime and makes sense for roommates who enjoy the same types of food and have similar schedules. Otherwise you will have to take turns in the kitchen or be able to tolerate more than one person using the kitchen at the same time.
- Everyone buys and prepares their own food. If you do this, you’ll need to label your food and/or designate cupboard and refrigerator space for each roommate.
- Buy and cook your own food, but share condiments and other items that you won’t use up quickly, such as milk, eggs, butter, flour and sugar.
Chores
Not everyone has the same standards when it comes to cleanliness. Avoid disagreements by talking about your expectations. It also helps to describe chores as well as their end results. For example, instead of saying, “do the dishes,” say, “clean, dry and put away dishes immediately after using them.”
Think about:
- Rotating chores or assigning them based on preference
- Using common courtesy, such as emptying the trash when it’s full and not leaving clutter in shared spaces
Guests
Having friends over is another potential source of conflict that should be sorted out before you become roommates. A frequent overnight guest can quickly feel like an extra roommate and strain your relationship. Talk about:
- Whether to set a limit on overnight guests. For example, you might limit overnight guests to four nights per month, per roommate
- How much notice, if any, to give roommates when a guest will be staying over
- Setting a curfew for noise. Loud music, a blaring television or noisy socializing must end by 11:00 on weeknights, for example
When you and your roommates have sorted out the details of your living arrangement, put it in writing. This will help you avoid misunderstandings and start everyone off with a clear understanding of one another’s expectations.
If you are single, you may choose to have roommates. Sharing a home with one or more friends has both benefits and drawbacks. You’ll pay less in rent and utilities and you’ll always have company, but living with others is not always easy.
Avoid conflicts by discussing everyone’s expectations and decide how to share costs, household responsibilities and living space. While it’s impossible to anticipate every issue that may come up, talking openly ahead of time will set the tone for a smooth living relationship.
Rent
Unless the landlord accepts rent checks or other payment from each person living in the home, you’ll have to decide who will make the payment and what the timeline is for the others to contribute their share. Other things to consider are:
- Whether to divide the rent equally or come up with a formula based on the size of your bedrooms or other factors
- How much notice, if any, must be given if one of you decides to move out before the lease is up
- Whether a departing roommate will be expected to find a replacement
Expenses
In addition to your rent, you will have utility bills as well as other costs to share. Some things to work out include:
- Who will set up service for utilities and be responsible for the monthly payments
- How you all will reimburse the responsible party for utility costs and by what date each month
- How each roommate will pay for the household supplies that you share, such as trash bags, toilet paper and dish soap. Options include reimbursing the roommate who buys the supplies or setting up a fund to which everybody contributes equally.
Food
Depending on your preferences, you can share food and cooking duties, do your own shopping and cooking, or try a combination of the two. Some ways to deal with buying and cooking food are:
- Grocery shop together or take turns shopping. This works best if you have similar diets and consume roughly the same amounts of food.
- Rotate cooking duties. This will streamline mealtime and makes sense for roommates who enjoy the same types of food and have similar schedules. Otherwise you will have to take turns in the kitchen or be able to tolerate more than one person using the kitchen at the same time.
- Everyone buys and prepares their own food. If you do this, you’ll need to label your food and/or designate cupboard and refrigerator space for each roommate.
- Buy and cook your own food, but share condiments and other items that you won’t use up quickly, such as milk, eggs, butter, flour and sugar.
Chores
Not everyone has the same standards when it comes to cleanliness. Avoid disagreements by talking about your expectations. It also helps to describe chores as well as their end results. For example, instead of saying, “do the dishes,” say, “clean, dry and put away dishes immediately after using them.”
Think about:
- Rotating chores or assigning them based on preference
- Using common courtesy, such as emptying the trash when it’s full and not leaving clutter in shared spaces
Guests
Having friends over is another potential source of conflict that should be sorted out before you become roommates. A frequent overnight guest can quickly feel like an extra roommate and strain your relationship. Talk about:
- Whether to set a limit on overnight guests. For example, you might limit overnight guests to four nights per month, per roommate
- How much notice, if any, to give roommates when a guest will be staying over
- Setting a curfew for noise. Loud music, a blaring television or noisy socializing must end by 11:00 on weeknights, for example
When you and your roommates have sorted out the details of your living arrangement, put it in writing. This will help you avoid misunderstandings and start everyone off with a clear understanding of one another’s expectations.