Finding the right apartment roommate can be tough if you don’t go into it with the right mentality.
Finding the right roommate can be difficult and take a good bit of time even. You need to find some common ground and chemistry to really have a good roomie relationship. The worst feeling is not wanting to come home to your own apartment all because of a bad roommate, so whether the right person is a friend, acquaintance, or even a stranger, it’s critical that you find the right person. Here are four tips for finding your ideal apartment roommate.
1. Get to Know Their Lifestyle
Everyone has their preferences and lives their life in a different way. Some people are night owls, some people are always at work, some people just really love listening to smooth jazz—but whatever these preferences are, you want to know if they may end up becoming a nuisance for you later. Meet with a potential roommate over coffee or drinks and be honest with them, tell them what your average day looks like, and see if it sounds like things will work out.
2. Create Realistic Expectations
Not only is knowing their lifestyle important, but so is understanding what they expect out of an apartment roommate. They may be the type of person who wants to share toiletries or food. They may also be the type of person who doesn’t want to do chores very often. As a result, it’s good to be clear on what the expectations ought to be to avoid conflicts from the get go.
3. Be Sure They’re Reliable
Your roommate is going to be on the lease just like you are, making you both responsible for paying rent on time. That means you need to make sure your roommate is reliable and will get you your money on time. It’s okay to ask what they do for a living or, if they’re a college student, if their parents will be helping them or if they receive a stipend. If someone is in the working world but is “in between jobs,” this may be a red flag.
4. Get a Second Opinion
If your potential apartment roommate is a stranger, you may want to ask for references from previous roommates to vouch for their character and reliability. If they haven’t had any past roommates, you may want to meet up with one of your friends and the potential roommate, as an uninvolved third party may be able to see red flags that you missed.
The Apartments of Wildewood have a friendly community that’s waiting to welcome you!
At The Apartments of Wildewood, located in beautiful in St. Mary’s Maryland, we offer homes with access to pools, an on-site gym, and maintenance whenever you need it – and have access to all the information you need to affordably rent an apartment in St. Mary’s. To set up an appointment to check out an apartment or townhouse rental from The Apartments at Wildewood, call us at 301.737.0737 or visit the website!
For more about renting with The Apartments of Wildewood, check out our Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Google+, or LinkedIn.