A Guide to Living with Apartment Roommates
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Moving into a brand new apartment is nothing short of exciting – especially if you’re looking to share this experience (and the cost of rent!) with a roommate. From splitting monthly expenses to enjoying your new city, we’ve come up with a guide to living with apartment roommates to make the experience more affordable, organized, and fun!
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Decide Where to Live
If you and a friend are looking to move into a Forest Properties apartment, or you’re moving to a brand new city and would like to split rent with someone, you first need to decide where to live!
From residing in the peaceful Bradenton-Sarasota areas of Florida, to living in the heart of historic Boston, the first point you and your potential roommate need to have in common is where to start looking for apartments. Many tenants choose their apartment based off proximity to work, which is a fantastic place to start, but don’t be afraid to consider how close you are to grocery stores, hospitals, restaurants, nightlife, and any activity you like to take part in!
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Find Your Roommate
You don’t want to simply find a roommate – you want to find the right roommate for your apartment living experience. Before you ask friends, coworkers, and family members to spread the word you’re searching for a roommate, have a list of questions prepared to go over with each candidate. After all, you will be living with this person, so you want to be sure you two are compatible!
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- How do you like to spend free time, and what do you do for fun?
- What do you do for a living, and what are your normal work hours?
- When would you like to move, and how long do you plan to live there?
- Do you expect to have a lot of visitors from time to time?
- Will you be bringing any pets along?
- Do you smoke or drink?
- Can you provide references?
- What is your monthly rent budget?
Settle on Your Monthly Budget
We know your shoe collection would look so much better in a walk-in closet, and being in walking distance from your favorite coffee shop would make your mornings brighter, but are these extra perks something you can really afford?
One of the most important points to settle with a potential roommate is the monthly budget. Yes, this does include rent, but also consider the cost of utilities, groceries, cable and internet, and other recurring monthly expenses (and surprise expenses, too!). You may say to yourself “I’ll just split the bill with my roommate,” remember to be honest with yourself on what you can comfortably afford when looking for an apartment. Be sure to relay this information when you meet with an apartment manager for tours.
Your Apartment Moving Checklist
Keep our apartment moving checklist handy to stay organized before, during, and even after your move!
Come Up with Apartment Rules
From housekeeping to cleaning responsibilities, it’s a good idea to start off any roommate relationship with a designated set of rules to maintain your Forest Properties apartment. The first rule that may come to mind is cleaning up after yourselves, and while this is important to keep a clean house, here are a few other points to discuss and answer for everyone to abide by:
- Sharing cleaning responsibilities of communal areas (living room, kitchen, bathroom)
- Taking turns grocery shopping/rules on sharing food
- Being considerate of daytime and overnight guests
- Quiet hours in the morning and evening
- Rotate taking out the trash
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Sign a Roommate Agreement
It looks like you have just about everything you need to find a roommate – congrats! Before the two (or three!) of you begin to search for an apartment and sign a lease, come up with a roommate agreement for everyone to abide by. Similar to apartment rules, this document will hold everyone responsible for keeping up with their piece of apartment responsibility. Some things to cover include weekly cleaning schedules, shared utility expenses, and when everyone’s portion of rent is due.
A Tip for Roommates: As you and your roommate(s) sit around the table, now is a good time to exchange emergency contact information and swap work schedules so you know when to expect each other!
Are you and your roommate ready to get your apartment hunt started? Contact our office today, and we’ll be more than happy to guide you along in your search!
Posted in Apartment Living | Tagged apartment roommate guide • living with roommates
