Make sure to talk over a clean schedule with your roommate to avoid not having a bowl for your breakfast.
Whether you have lived with a roommate before unsuccessfully or are just striking out on your own, there are a lot of things you should know before signing a lease with a roommate. There is a saying “you never really know someone until you live with them,” and this couldn’t be truer than living with a significant other or close friend. So let’s talk about some tips on how to live with your new roommate.
Do Your Research
With so much technology at your fingertips, who doesn’t do their research on someone before moving in with them. With the use of the internet, the first thing you should do is to check out their court history. This will tell you if they are involved in anything you don’t want to be involved in like drugs or domestic abuse. For many states, this is a free service offered. The next step is to snoop around on social media. If you don’t do this for everyone you meet already, do it for potential roommates. You find out who a person really is when you look at their Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest.
Never Be the Sole Account Holder
If you have your name on the lease, electricity, cable, and water, you could be left in a hole if your new roommate moves out without paying. While you could get some of it back if you sue, you will have to have proof that they were giving you money toward those bills. But if you split up the electric, cable, and internet accounts between you right from the start, you won’t be left holding the bag. You could also split the bills equally and have everyone pay the same amount every month. Make sure everyone is one the lease and to split the payments equally to ensure no one pays an unfair share.
Set Ground Rules
While your screaming match over dirty laundry and stolen food was settled in college by a Resident Advisor. In the real world, no one will help you mediate these differences, so you have to work them out on your own. It is important to set up ground rules while getting settled in your new digs. Talk about significant others spending the night, insignificant others too. You should also establish food, drinks, and even toiletry boundaries before storing anything in common areas. It is important to lay down these rules before someone drinks all of your coffee the night before a big meeting at work.
Questions to Ask
It is important to get everything settled before the first blow up happens, so why not ask all your questions up front. What time do you shower? Where should we put the mail? How will we buy shared items: chip in or rotating costs? When should we clean? How long does food sit in the fridge before it can be tossed? Communal laundry? Smoking allowed? Official quiet hours? If someone needs to move out, how much advance should be given? These are hard questions to ask, but they should be discussed as soon as possible in order to make living together easier.
Using these tips, you and your potential roommate will get along well. For more information on starting the next chapter of your life, call Harborside Village Apartments!
Living with Roommates at Harborside Village!
Harborside Village Apartments are beautiful waterfront luxury apartments located on the picturesque Gunpowder Cove! To learn more about Harborside Village, please give us a call at 410-679-1130 or send us an email at [email protected]. You can also request a brochure to learn more about life at Harborside Village on our website!
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