Most young Aussies experience living with roommates, which can be an immense challenge while being equally exciting; depends on how you look at it.
We all agree that money is, presumably, the underlying root of all tensions in such instances, and it can be a never-ending source of quarrel if you don’t handle the situation accordingly. In this direction, we have collected a bunch of useful tips on how to make the matter of sharing houses less problematic than it is.
Sharing Houses
Bills
When you are sharing houses, it is highly recommended to organise the bills in such a way as to avoid any source of confusion. For starters, it goes without speaking that responsibilities should be shared. A particular housemate may take the responsibility to make sure that each bill is paid on time, and asking each housemate for his/her share. Each roommate may assume this responsibility now and then.
There are some instances in which the main tenant may fix a particular amount for each roommate to cover monthly, in spite of the sum of the bills. Nonetheless, take note that, although that may ease things a bit, you should be wary of people who establish a margin of error that actually generates them profit. At the end of the day, it’s up to creating a system that works best for you, and sticking to it to eliminate confusion.
How about rent?
When it comes to sharing houses, it’s quintessential to talk openly with all the roommates and determine the way in which rent costs should be divided.
Although, at first, it may seem crystal clear that the costs should be split equally, some bedrooms in the building may be more spacious than others, for example. It’s important to involve each housemate in this conversation so that everyone agrees on this matter. One may prefer paying extra for a bigger room while another may want to cut down on the costs by choosing the smaller space.
Additionally, make sure you’re informed regarding the market price of similar rooms in the area you’re living since you don’t want to be paying more than the room is worth.
The matter of essentials and food
Moving on to the next source of conflict, namely food and essentials. Some prefer eating in, while others would rather have dinner out. Therefore, since each has different preferences, when sharing houses, ideally, each roommate should pay for his/her meals.
On the other hand, sharing the costs for essentials such as kitchen paper towels, toilet paper, oil, cleaning products, so on and so forth may aid you all to cut down on your expenses.
Also, make sure to talk openly about the items that should be included on the essentials list, and make sure everyone contributes to the costs.
