When leaving uni, one of the main concerns, other than finding a job is where you’ll live and who you’ll live with. Many graduates decide that upon leaving university they will move into a house share with other graduates and professionals, and many decide that it’s the best time to move in with their partner. As it’s currently #GradWeek here at Belvoir, we decided to take a look at how you can find the best housemates for your shared home.
The last thing you want to do is pick a terrible housemate, ultimately you want as little drama as possible…and there’s plenty of ways you can pick awesome roomies.
Terrifyingly, there’s actually a thing called ‘speed flatmating’ it’s like a date, but you won’t have to buy anyone dinner. Essentially you’ll be able to sit down with lots of fellow flatmate hunters and find out who you click with. Now, this might not be the most scientific way of finding a housemate, however, you can’t beat meeting someone face-to-face and seeing if you get along with them or not. Many people who have gone through the process of speed flatmating say that they didn’t just find a flatmate, they found a friend…you can’t argue with that!
Find them online! There’s loads of website where you can now post a listing to find a new roomie. Eventually, it’s best to meet in person – however starting online makes sense, especially if you’re part of the digital generation. The internet is the place to go for anything, it seems you can find just about everything there, so why not flatmates!
Recent research has found which careers produce the best housemates, something which might be worth taking into account! The research found that the perfect flat-share consists of a doctor, a plumber, an IT technician and a lawyer. Not only will it be a harmonious home, but you’ve got someone to cover every eventuality in life…no more leaky pipes, colds, broken PCs or lawsuits!
Once you’ve found your new flatmates, you will no doubt want to keep them. Good housemates are worth having around so making sure the home environment is harmonious is key. Make sure everyone is paying their bills on time, other flatmates may start to get fed up of constantly footing the bill if someone won’t pay.
Always make sure you’re neat and tidy, or have a cleaning rota for communal areas…if it’s your turn then pick up the mop and get cleaning. There’s nothing more annoying than messy housemates so always try and ensure you’ve tidied up after yourself when using the kitchen.
Never host a noisy part without talking to your flatmates first. Milestone birthday? Don’t simply invite all of your nearest and dearest around for a booze-fuelled party without being sure that your roomies don’t mind, if they’ve got a big day at work in the morning…keep noise to a minimum!
Finding and keeping good housemates is extremely important when moving into your first place straight out of uni, one of the best pieces of advice we can offer is to simply be a good friend to them – it goes a long way and will help you all to live in a much friendlier environment!
