Sharing your living space with another person can be one of the most challenging experiences you will endure when renting. However, it can also lead to long-lasting relationships! Whether this person is a friend, a colleague, or a stranger, your home becomes a delicate environment of balancing emotions, lifestyles, and habits that may be a continuous challenge to some. Living with a roommate can involve some trial and error, figuring out what works and doesn’t, and learning to compromise.

With all that said, let’s discuss some tips on creating a harmonious living environment that works for you and your roommate in your Camden apartment!

Interview and Get to Know Potential Roommates

Before you decide to say yes, the preliminary stage is your chance to dig into potential roommate habits and routines to ensure that they will be a good fit for you! This is also your opportunity to get to know them and determine if they will enjoy your lifestyle and living preferences.

A thorough interview can prevent future conflicts and create a living environment where both parties feel comfortable and respected. This stage allows you to identify any potential red flags early on and ensures that you and your future roommate share similar values.

Finding the Right Apartment

A huge factor that contributes to a harmonious living environment is ensuring that the apartment (or townhome) you are moving into works for you and your roommate. Camden offers so many options when deciding which type of floorplan works for what you need! Talk with your roommate and agree on these three things when you tour apartment homes:

Size: A floor plan that’s too small will leave you feeling cramped and stir-crazy, but a space too large can add unnecessary expenses to your monthly budget and will force you to spend more time on upkeep and cleaning.

Budget: Coinciding with the size of the floor plan, a larger space will typically come with higher costs (utilities, rent, etc).

Lifestyle: How often are you looking to entertain? Do you need a kitchen space to accommodate entertaining friends and family, or an apartment that is more fit for just the occasional gathering? Do you or your roommate work from home and need a home office space?

Photo Courtesy of Camden Town Square, in Orlando, FL

Navigating Roommate Conflicts

You worked all day, even put in overtime, and you came home to a disastrous mess in your kitchen! Whether your roommate is a stranger or even a long-term friend, the odds of a disagreement are pretty high. When different personalities and habits mesh together, it could create uneasiness and lead to conflict. However, conflicts do not have to spell disaster in your home!

Before jumping right into the conversation, think about how you can get your concerns across without making personal attacks. Focus on using “I” statements rather than “you” statements to share your point of view on how this concern affects you. Using “you” statements could lead to a defensive and accusatory argument that won’t resolve the situation and may create hostility between you and your roommate.

Photo Courtesy of Timur Weber from Pexels

Embracing change and welcoming difficult conversations should all be part of the preliminary stage that I mentioned earlier. Vetting out individuals with this mindset will help shape how you and that individual resolve conflicts down the road.

Remember, every roommate situation is unique, and finding what works for every person is key to a balanced environment. For more tips on how to make sure you and your roommate stay roommates, check out this article for 8 easy tips to help squash your roommate disputes!