What To Discuss With Your Roommates BEFORE Moving In

By Samantha Gorny on September 7, 2016

Whether you are living with your best friends or people you’ve never met before, it’s important to communicate with each other and talk about your expectations for the year. To prevent an awkward living situation, here’s what to discuss with your roommates before you begin living together.

1. Money

Before you even step foot into your apartment, you should make sure everyone understands that rent must be paid on time. If the utilities payment must be paid under one name, establish a day of the month that the money is to be due. If you want to split groceries or make group meals, make sure that everyone knows they will be expected to contribute to the cost.

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Finally, if someone is not upholding their part of the agreement, don’t be afraid to remind your roommates to pay. Nothing creates a hostile environment like unpaid debts.

2. Chores

The best way to handle chores is to split them evenly between roommates. Suggest setting up a weekly rotating chore chart so that someone is doing their part to help keep the apartment in shape and no one person feels they are doing the bulk. This is one of the most important aspects of living together. If one person feels the workload is uneven, it could lead to tension and resentment.

3. Morning etiquette

It’s inevitable that different roommates are going to have different morning routines. Some may enjoy a slow, quiet start while others like to be up and at ‘em early. Come to a mutual understanding between roommates on playing music, turning on the TV, or if it’s a small apartment, doing dishes early in the morning.

4. Overnight guests

Overnight guests are a tricky subject. While you are entitled to have anyone you want to stay over, it is essential to remember that everyone in the house should still feel comfortable in their own home. Make sure your roommates know it would be ridiculous to forbid each other from having overnight guests, but it should not become a distraction or makes the other roommates uncomfortable.

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