Sharing a Rental with a Roommate

Sharing the burden of an apartment rental Some people find roommates can put more places in their range. Sharing a lease property, whether it’s a flat or a house, may be either a dream come true or a living nightmare. There are many advantages to having a roommate; however, there are also disadvantages. When these disadvantages are severe they may result in an uncomfortable living environment in a few situations and even a dangerous living environment in other situations. There are a couple of ways a tenant may protect themselves when sharing their lease property with a roommate. This includes screening the potential roommate carefully and including the roommate on the lease agreement.

The Advantages and Disadvantages to Having a Roommate

Having a roommate may certainly be advantageous in a few situations. The primary advantage is financial. Tenants who choose to have a roommate, essentially cut their rent in half if they choose to have one roommate or in thirds if they choose to have two roommates. This is ideal for tenants who’d like to have a larger flat but wouldn’t be able to afford such a flat without the aid of a roommate.

Another advantage to having a roommate is the chance to share household responsibilities with the roommate. Naturally this is only an advantage when the roommate is willing to do his share of the work on a regular basis. If this isn’t the case, it may result in a huge disadvantage which will be covered briefly in the section on disadvantages.

One of the most significant disadvantages to having a roommate is a lack of privacy. Those who live alone don’t ever have to worry about not having time to themselves while they’re in their flat. However, when a tenant has a roommate, there’s no guarantee the tenant will ever have any time to himself while he’s in the flat.

Another disadvantage to having a roommate is the distribution of household responsibilities may not always be even. Roommates should have a discussion regarding the household responsibilities such as cleaning the common areas but there’s always the possibility that one roommate may not do his share of the work. When this happens it may create conflict and resentment among the roommates. This conflict may make the living situation rather uncomfortable.

Select a Compatible Roommate

When choosing a roommate, the tenant should be careful to select a compatible roommate. In the previous section we discussed how conflicts may arise when one roommate doesn’t do his share of the cleaning. However, incompatible cleaning styles are only a small portion of the compatibility issues roommates may face. One important issue is entertaining. If one roommate has visitors at the flat much, it may cause troubles if the other roommate isn’t comfortable with this.

Even the times in which the roommates usually sleep may cause troubles. If one roommate goes to bed early and wakes up at 4:00 am, it may be problematic if the other roommate likes to stay up late and not wake up until 9:00 am. In this case the roommates may not only start to get on each other’s nerves but they may also start to adversely affect the other’s job or social life.

Include the Roommate on the Rental Agreement

Finally, tenants should make sure to include their roommate or roommates on the lease agreement. This is very important as it aids to protect all of the roommates. Inclusion of all of the roommates prevents one roommate from being able to ask another to leave unjustly. This may occur when conflicts arise but inclusion on the lease agreement ensures each of the roommates has a right to live on the property. Placing each of the roommates’ names on the lease agreement also prevents one roommate from not making their rent payments in a timely manner. It will also aid to prevent one roommate from being held legally responsible for not paying the rent on time by the leasing agent.