Tips for living together with roommates

Set clear agreements

The most common reason for fights are not having clear agreements. It will important to create a cleaning schedule, so everyone knows when they are expected to clean the bathroom and kitchen. Make sure to put in the schedule which tasks are part of it and which spaces you would like to keep clean. You could also divide the fridge and kitchen cabinets between all the roommates, so everyone uses their own space to store food and drinks. It is always a dissapointment when you come home and the pizza you were aiming for has dissapeared..

We also advice you to set agreements about who is paying what. There are many apps on your phone to split costs weekly or monthly. Money will always be a sensitive topic.

Clean up your own mess

Besides creating a cleaning schedule it speaks for themselves that you will clean up your own mess in common areas. If you would like to make a mess of your own room, that is your choice. Make sure to take the laundry out of the machine in time, so other are also able to use it.

Give each other some space

The moment a roommate is staring at his/her phone or is wearing headphone, it might be that he/she is not interested in talking at the moment. Do not take this personally, because everyone needs some personal space sometimes. Try to think along with your roommates. If you are up for watching a movie or listening to music late at night, use some headphones to avoid discussion about it

Discover new countries and cultures

Do you have international roommates? Enjoy diversity! Having different nationalities often lead to culture differences and language struggles in the beginning. Keep in mind that everyone is raised in a different environment with different rules and standards. After a while, you will see that having international roommates only brings advantages.

Try some typical dishes from different countries or celebrate each other's holidays. You will see it is a lot of fun to have diversity!

Be open and honest

If you are living together with other people, you will always have to be open and honest to each other. If something happens which you don't like or if someone is not sticking to the rules, tell this person what ou think. This will avoid heavy discussions.

Try to speak to someone personally instead of sending messages in a group app, social media or notes on the table. Don't forget to communicate about practical things, such as taking friends home.

As we all know: communication is key!

Be yourself

Our most important tip: be yourself. You do not have to be different then who you really are. Respect is the most important aspect in having roommates. You do not have to be best friends, but it is all about having respect for each other and setting borders.