We don’t always get to choose our roommates which is why sharing a home with someone else is not always an easy and trouble-free experience. In fact, even if you are good friends with your housemate, there is no guarantee that you will be blissfully living together. If you want to stay on good terms with your flatmate, you need to learn to stand up for yourself and to:
- Speak up if you are not happy about your arrangement
- Not to let your housemate take advantage of you and your kindness
- Avoid regularly borrowing money from your roomie
- Do all the housework alone
Nevertheless, you should also try and be a good flatmate yourself. Only then will your arrangement work. Otherwise, you may find yourself looking for a competent man and van in London and packing your items days after you have moved in together.
Don’t be noisy
One of the most common types of complaints that people have about their housemates is related to noise. If you like your music loud and you enjoy parting, you have a few options – either to tone things down a bit or to arrange something like a schedule. For example, if your flatmate needs to study in the evenings or get up early for work in the morning, blast your music or invite your friends over only on weekends when that won’t be much of a problem for the other person or people in the home.
Don’t be nosy
Even if you are very close your roommate, do not go through their stuff without telling them. Give them some space and don’t grill them with numerous questions about their personal life from Day 1. If you want to borrow something from them, you first need to ask them.
Do pay your bills and rent and pay them on time
Money can get tight sometimes but if you struggle to pay your rent on time every single month or you always find yourself borrowing money from your flatmate, you should probably move to a smaller apartment or to find a place that has a cheaper rent.
Don’t be messy
Avoid making a mess, especially in the common rooms and areas such as the bathroom and the kitchen. Remember that your roommate is not your mom and that you are not a school student. Therefore, don’t expect them to clean after you, wash your dishes or iron your clothes. If you want the other person to be organised and neat, serve as an example.
Do make compromises
If you don’t want to make compromises such as having a few odd décor pieces in the house or following a facilities schedule, you should probably live on your own. The reality of sharing a home with another individual (no matter whether it is a flatmate, a friend, a relative, etc.) is that you need to be flexible. Well, there are certain things with which you should never compromise such as storage space, paying rent, doing household chores and noise. Don’t forget that having a roommate is a compromise situation after all. You don’t have a home of your own or you can’t afford to live alone which is why you have decided to compromise and postpone living your dream life for now and to instead move in with a stranger to save some money.