Living in a shared property has both advantages and challenges. Here are some rules for ‘living better’ in such a property.
1. Clean up your own mess, and help keep communal areas clean
Leaving your mess for others to clean up is inconsiderate and can cause tension and arguments. When you have finished eating, you should wash up straightaway, clean the sink, and wipe down the table and any counters that you have used. After using the bathroom, you should pick up wet towels and dirty clothes, clean the shower or bath, and wipe down the sink.
You should also chip in to ensure communal areas are kept tidy and clean, perhaps by using a cleaning rota of some kind.
2. Have an agreement around significant others and guests
Set out a rule early on about how often a significant other or family and friends can visit or stay overnight. Not everyone in the property will feel comfortable with strangers in the house, so it is important to find a happy medium that everyone is happy with.
A transfer of equity can be used to share some of the equity within a property with partners, relatives or friends. This involves adding their name(s) to the title deeds of the property. Several law firms specialise in these types of transactions and may even have a dedicated transfer of equity solicitor. A number of these firms also have useful online resources, such as the examples seen here: https://www.parachutelaw.co.uk/transfer-of-equity-solicitor.
3. Set privacy boundaries
Even though you are sharing a property with other people, privacy is important. So, agree on rules like knocking on bedroom doors if they are closed rather than just barging in, and not going into other people’s rooms unaccompanied.
4. Agree safety rules
Everyone wants to feel safe in their home, and establishing safety rules is an excellent way of ensuring this. Make sure that everyone knows how to lock up if they are the last ones to go to bed, including setting any alarms or turning on any security lights. Agree on how to deal with any security threats and make sure everyone has contact details for all the other roommates.
Although they may sometimes seem a bit parent-y, there are plenty of reasons why roommate rules are important. They give clear expectations, promote respect, and help prevent conflicts.