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photo10 Rules for Flatting

The thought of going flatting is completely exciting. Total freedom from your parents means no one telling you to take the rubbish out, asking you what time you're going to be home or making you stay in on a Saturday night to baby-sit your younger brother or sister. Unfortunately it may also mean having to wear 3 jumpers in the living room just to watch telly as you can't afford proper heating, no more home-cooked meals, and being forced to use cheap, single-ply toilet paper. However, there are ways to make your, and your flatmate's, lives much easier.

  1. Pay rent as soon as you get paid. There's nothing worse than getting through the weekend to the end of your pay week before realizing that you've spent your rent on McDonald's and too many vodkas at the uni pub. You'll flatmates will only hate you for it.
  2. Put money aside each week for bills. Whether it's into a separate account of your own or a joint flat account, this is undoubtedly the best way to avoid a monthly panic in which you desperately try to scrounge together $100 for power and phone. Furthermore, having to ask your parents to bail you out is no way to prove to them that you're a responsible adult.
  3. Tidy up after yourself. This means emptying the rubbish bin when it needs it instead of just shoving the mess deeper down with your foot so you can wedge your banana skin in. The worst flatmates are those that leave crusty pots piled in the sink in the hope that someone else'll do it for them and you'll soon find yourself wishing your mum was there to yell at them.
  4. Don't scrimp when buying your groceries. Inevitably you'll just end up finding that the sight of 2 minute noodles staring back at you from your otherwise empty cupboard is enough to send you off to the local dairy in your pyjamas for burger rings and chocolate. This is not good. Not only will all your clothes start getting too tight but you'll also spend more money than if you just did a good shop at the supermarket in the first place. Stock up on veggies and meat (yes, it's expensive but it's definitely worth it).
  5. Be hesitant about living with friends. Everyone says this and there's a reason why. While there's a chance that it may turn out to be one continuous slumber party, sometimes it's possible that you can simply end up knowing too much about a person. And, like family, your friends won't hesitate to take advantage of you by expecting you to put up with their bad habits (like smoking in your bedroom and pinching your food). Strangers, on the other hand, are far more careful of offending. Besides which, it's a great way to meet new people.
  6. Set up pin numbers with your telephone company so that a record can be kept of who owes how much for cell phone and toll calls. No one is ever willing to take credit for the peak hour call to London or the updates from the surf report.
  7. Pass on messages!!!!
  8. Don't invite your girlfriend/boyfriend to stay every night. While it's cool having the freedom to do so, a three-bedroom house isn't always meant to house four people. Bear in mind that your flatmates chose to live with you, not your other half. It'll be you taking the brunt of their anger though when they have to have a cold shower four mornings in a row coz your girlfriend was in there shaving her legs.
  9. Be respectful of each other's need for sleep. This means minimizing the noise at midnight on a Tuesday if your flatmates have work or early lectures the next day. They don't want to come out in their dressing gown to yell at you and your friends anymore than you want to be yelled at. Save it for the weekends.
  10. And finally, be generous. Help your flatmates out if you can, even if it just means sharing dinner one night or offering them a ride to work when it's raining. You'll get the goodness back somehow and it makes for a much happier living environment.

by Rachel Williamson July 2004 updated Feb 2008