Sharing a property can be one of the best experiences of your life. However, there are two sides to every coin, so it’s wise to consider both the benefits and downsides before making the big decision.
Ready-made friends
Living with other people is the quickest way to meet new people. When finding your feet in new surroundings things can often become very overwhelming, so it helps to have people to share a laugh or a glass of wine with at the end of the day. It beats eating dinner alone each night and one of these housemates could end up being a VIP at your wedding one day – you just never know.
Loss of privacy
Once you decide to share a property, to a large degree much of your personal space is lost too. Depending on the setup you may find your bedroom is the only safe haven for both your belongings and your sanity. However, you’ll soon find patterns emerging for when other tenants use the bathroom or leave for work, meaning you can forward-plan the best times to take a long bath or relax on the couch watching your favourite programme.
Less financial burden
A key reason for wanting to share a property is it slashes the cost of your outgoings compared with living by yourself. Going into an all-inclusive deal, for instance, takes away the responsibility of paying extra bills and can help keep costs low. You can then redirect the money you’ve saved into a holiday or a mortgage deposit for your own home.
Awkward money talks
Nobody enjoys talking about money but if the household is responsible for splitting utility bills, there’s no way around it. Each of you will contribute differently to the usage of bills at home as some may like the heating so high it feels like the Tropics, while others leave the lights on all night. Overcome this with an open conversation about when bills have to be paid and don’t be afraid to give a gentle reminder for all to be ‘mindful’ of the costs.
Strengthens people skills
Although most of us have shared a family with parents and siblings, living in shared accommodation teaches us far more about our own level of tolerance and consideration for others. Being mindful of how much noise you’re making, cleaning up after yourself and talking through your disputes are all part of the experience.
Silly fallings out
Everyone has a different attitude to living standards and it is bound to cause some petty disputes. Most of these will be very minor and talking through the issues soon after they happen is the easiest way to prevent them escalating. Nobody enjoys tension at home you could cut with a bread knife or gossipy, non-direct housemates.
Choice over your housemates
As a tenant you have more control over who you live with than you realise. Lettings agents and houseshare websites give you the option to carefully select what you want and categorically don’t want to make the end result as tailored to you as possible. You like animals? Hate the smell of cigarettes? Prefer to live with mature housemates? It’s all up to you.
Unwanted houseguests
One thing perhaps you have less control of is who your housemates bring back with them. More tenancy agreements now include clauses, which restrict the length of time you’re allowed to have someone stay over or if you’re able to at all, so it’s worth asking the question before you sign on the dotted line.
Increased safety and wellbeing
Ever heard the phrase there’s safety in numbers? Besides someone perhaps forgetting to close a window at night, living with other people can help you to feel safer in an emergency. But even on a less serious scale, you might just be feeling under the weather or a little homesick and prefer someone else around the house.
House rules
Your landlord may set them, you may move into an existing houseshare where they’re already set or they might be awkwardly unspoken – but they exist. Contrary to living alone, you cannot just do what you want when you want, however provided they’re not unreasonable – how much harm can they do?
Here at Platinum Crown, our experienced property advisers can help make the business of sharing a property, a simple one. Call us today on 01206 705 555 for a no obligation talk about what you are looking for.
