Household harmony

Establish ground rules

This is best done before or upon arrival at the property, but maybe it is worth considering if there has been some friction building up.

Remember that not everyone operates under the same assumptions- what may seem normal or common sense to you, may not be to other people. Establishing some agreed ground rules will set some common limits on behaviour.

Guest rules

A lot of complaints we get are when tenants have guests- often partners or siblings- who make housemates feel that they actually have an extra tenant living there rent free. Remember that whilst you have freedoms to live your own life how you wish, you should be considerate of those you live with and will have full responsibility for the behaviour of any guests.

Our rules are that guests should stay no more than three nights in a week- if you have someone with an over-staying guest and your housemate is not receptive to your requests to stop, please let us know and we may be able to take action. 

Some are more sensitive than others to this issue. We recommend that you discuss this with your housemates at the outset to avoid tensions further down the line.

Decide on how you will tackle the housework

Different people have different standards, some people hate to take out the rubbish but don't mind vacuuming, and so on. It may be best to work out between you what sort of standards you are aiming for and who will take responsiblity for certain tasks.

See our page on setting up a rota.