How to make renting with roommates a success

With rents on the rise and vacancy rates extremely low, renting with roommates has rarely looked so attractive.

At the same time, caution is needed, especially when renting with others. Negotiations to create a cohabitation deal are crucial, and you’ll need to be prepared to make compromises. 

Firstly, splitting the rent with roommates should be easy, by simply dividing the full rent figure by how many people live in the home.

However, problems can quickly arise if one person enjoys a larger, nicer bedroom than the other and both roommates pay the same rent.

In this case, a rent split may need to be based on which roommate has the biggest advantages; in other words, the one enjoying that nicer bedroom should pay more rent than the other.

Who pays the rent to the property manager is another issue. Two or more roommates may have agreed to a co-tenancy lease agreement, in which case they’re both legally responsible for paying rent on time.

However, a single tenant on the lease, even if they have roommates,  is responsible for the lease, the relationship with the property management company and the upkeep and care of the property.

If roommates don’t send their rent to the sole tenant on time, this is of no consequence to the landlord or property management company. The tenant named on the lease must pay the overall rent. 

Bill payment can be an even more challenging issue for rental roommates as they can be hard to split evenly.

One roommate may hate hot weather and want the air-conditioner to be on 24/7, while the other may not. One roommate may love long, hot showers and have an electric blanket they use constantly, while the other doesn’t.

Again, it’s worthwhile discussing who pays how much, and why, when it comes to bills.

Cleaning and food arrangements can be another contentious point. A cleaning roster for shared areas, such as bathrooms and the kitchen, is a great idea. Of course, one person’s idea of clean may not be another’s.

A cooking roster can also be a great idea, with each roommate cooking a meal once a week, but again, one person’s idea of delicious may not be another’s.

Alternatively, rental roommates may decide only to share the costs of regular food and drinks such as bread, milk, butter and coffee, and pay for their own particular culinary preferences.