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Co-living with other people can reduce your living costs and help you expand your social circle. However, you should definitely carefully consider what type of people you are comfortable with living. Here are some things you should keep in mind:
1. Know what you want
First, take a look at what you want out of this relationship. If you’re new to a city or country, you might want to expand your social network and make friends. Or maybe you already have a close friend circle and just want someone to share the bills with. Whatever you’re looking for, be clear about it and ask the same from them.
2. Lifestyle
You don’t have to have the same lifestyle as your roommate, but it’s important to make sure you both understand each other’s habits. That means everything: sleeping habits, work hours, food preferences, allergies, smoking, drinking habits, hobbies and so much more.
3. Cleanliness
Yes, okay, most people will say they’re clean, but ‘clean’ means different things for different people. Make sure you talk about your understanding of it and your expectation of how you would keep your accommodation clean together.
4. Responsibility
You definitely don’t want to find yourself in a situation where your roommate hasn’t paid for their rent, and they are unable to. It is of utmost importance to have that awkward ‘finances’ talk. No need to ask them how much money they make but tactful questions about finances and how much they can afford to spend monthly.
5. Guests
Ask about their entertainment preferences, romantic partners, and house guests. If you like to have people over, make sure they are aware and don’t mind. Also a small tip for when you move in with someone: let them know beforehand if you’re having people over – there’s nothing worse than coming home to find your place filled with people you have never heard of.
6. Conflict resolution
Naturally, you will occasionally disagree on things, whether it’s about cleanliness, guests or just generally being annoyed with each other. Ask a few questions about past experiences with conflicts to get a sense of how they behave in these situations.
Lastly, if you want to learn more about their lifestyle, check out their social media accounts – it’s not stalking, it’s reference checking 😉Either that or ask them to hang out for an evening. This will allow for you to get to know each other before committing to anything!
