It’s that time of year again, where cars get filled to the brim and garbage bags become your best packing buddy. You might be living with people you’ve known or lived with before, or maybe this will be your first time living with these people. Regardless of who you’re living with and how long you’ve known them, you should think about creating a roommate agreement.
Would you have moved into a place that asked you to just trust your landlord’s ‘word’ instead of having a written and signed lease? Probably not. So try approaching a roommate agreement like you would a lease because there are certain things that need to be discussed, agreed upon, and deemed non-negotiable, whether you’re living with friends or people you’ve just met.
When making a roommate agreement there are two main categories your points of discussion will fall under. The first is Living Habits, which includes all the daily tasks, preferences, and courtesies you should agree upon.
- Quiet Time: Figure out who gets up early/sleeps in late, who goes to bed early/stays up late, and who likes volumes turned high/volumes kept low so everyone knows what kind of noise levels are appropriate at certain times of the day.TIP: Earplugs are a quick fix if most people prefer noise, but they are limited in blocking out sounds. Headphones are a quick fix if most people prefer silence. Be sure to go over exam schedules so everyone knows when quiet time is seriously important.
- Shared Spaces: The shared spaces like kitchens and bathrooms in apartments and houses can be tight. Post your timetables and work schedules on the fridge so everyone is aware of who needs access to the kitchen for cooking/prepping to-go meals or the bathroom for getting ready.TIP: The biggest thing about living with others is respecting that spaces and appliances are shared so compromises will need to be made.
- Guests: There’s nothing more annoying than walking into the kitchen for breakfast Sunday morning only to find some random curled up on your futon. If that doesn’t sound like fun, try implementing a notification system for situations like this. Whether you tell your roommates in person, through Facebook messaging, or even sending out a middle of the night text is better than the awkward morning surprise.TIP: If you’re thinking about having a party or a larger hang, ask your roommates if they would be okay with the shared space being taken over for a while and be sure to invite them to any parties you have. You don’t want to make any roommates feel like they can’t move around in their own living space.
- Cleaning Schedules: No one wants to get stuck ‘momming’ their roommates, so discuss what chores you want done, how often, and how you’ll take turns doing them. Doing chores like sweeping and vacuuming once every two weeks is manageable with everyone’s schedules and easy to have a new person take it on each time. Discuss how often you want the bathroom cleaned and also make a fair rotation. Taking out the trash and recycling is dependent on pickup schedules if you’re in a house and when things get full. So think about what kind of rotation is fair and doable. TIP: A good rule of thumb to have for shared spaces, like the kitchen and the bathroom, is to have everyone clean up after themselves so you’re not living in a mess between cleanings.
The second category is Resources, which encompasses any items you and your roommates share the use of, as well as, any bills that need to be paid.
- Bills: Definitely the most important thing to get straightened out upon moving in is the payment of bills because it can lead to problems such as late fees or one person paying more to cover another’s missed payment. Everyone in the house/apartment should be aware of the costs associated with living there. It’s easiest if one person takes on making all the payments for one specific category like Internet or even all the bills if they are comfortable with that responsibility. Set up due dates ahead of the bill’s actual due date so the person paying gets all the payments well in advance so no late fees are incurred. Make sure the payments are divided up evenly, unless someone has required something extra, like cable, or someone uses more resources than the rest.
- Kitchen Stuff: Who doesn’t love reaching for a glass in their cupboard only to see it sitting in the sink because someone else used it? If that bugs you as much as it bugs me, try keeping all the kitchen stuff separate so you can always access what you need. Kitchen stuff includes small appliances, cutlery, pots/pans, dishes/glasses, etc. Record who has provided what items-so they can take them or sell them when they move-and decide which items are for shared use.TIP: if you’re keeping everything separate it works best if everyone has set cupboards or space in the pantry for their items so there is no confusion on which items belong to which roommate.
- Food and Beverages: We’ve all heard the horror stories of the roommate who eats all the cereal and finishes off the pot of coffee without making another one. First decide if you and your roommates want to share any groceries like milk or eggs to save space, or if everyone wants to keep their groceries separate to avoid someone taking more than another. Labelling or having designated spaces for each roommates’ food/drinks is always a good way to avoid problems.
- Cleaning Tools/Supplie: -Decide on who’s bringing/buying what items and whether they plan on sharing them. It doesn’t make a lot of sense to have four brooms kicking around one apartment, but it also isn’t fair if one person provided all the cleaning tools for everyone else to use. Discuss what resources you all want to share the use of, such as dish soap, Lysol wipes, garbage/recycling bags and sponges. You can all buy one of each, or you can all decide to bring a bunch of one specific item, or you can all pitch in the same amount of money to go out and buy all the supplies you need for the year.
By no means is this an exhaustive list of everything that should be included in your agreement, but it is a good starting point. The best advice I can give anyone about living with others is that communication is key. Being open and willing to discuss anything is huge, because letting your frustrations fester can lead to even larger problems and fights. So take the clichéd advice everyone gives newly married couples and never go to bed angry. You’ve got eight months or more with these people, so make the best of it.