Finding the Right Roommate
The first time you hunt for a roommate can be scary. Just knowing where to start can be a mystery, let alone how to avoid becoming the next victim of a poorly chosen housemate. There are a few key steps that can make the process a bit easier to handle — and to ensure a more successful outcome.
Understanding yourself is going to be the key to finding a good roommate. You need to know what type of roommate you are and what type of person you like to be around so that you don’t end up with someone who is intolerable. Determining your comfort level with regards to cleanliness, types of music and entertainment, number and frequency of guests and things as simple as diet, exercise and sleep schedules are all important in identifying whether or not a potential roommate is compatible.
The next important factor is finances. While it may be tempting to live with your best friend because you know everything about each other and agree on everything, once money enters the picture the friendship may become strained. Finding a roommate with the ability to pay their share of the bills and the discipline to do so on time is paramount to a successful communal living environment. Figure out how much money the roommate, or roommates, will need to contribute and what they will get for that money in terms of bedroom, kitchen access, etc.
Now you’re ready to use those two elements to compose an ad for a roommate. You’ll want to post it every possible place you can think of. Newspapers, online classified sites, and bulletin boards around your school and neighborhood are good places to start. There are professional roommate finding sites and companies that can also help with the search. You can even send the word out to all your friends and followers on social media sites in case they know someone looking for a place to live.
Now comes the most important part of the process. You will need to evaluate everyone who answers your ad according to the elements you determined were necessary for a successful roommate. Whatever you do, don’t settle for someone who meets some, but not all of the deal breakers. You want a roommate who is both compatible and financially dependable. Once you have that, you’re good to go.