Four tips to pick the best fit for a roommate.

In this post you will discover a four step process for finding the perfect roommate for you to live with. If you want to live in downtown Vancouver, downtown L.A. or New York. These are some of the most expensive places to live in the world. In fact, in almost every large city in North America, you may find yourself with the exact same couple of problems. Very few rental accommodations and very high rent. You may be able to find a solution for both these problems by looking for someone who wants to share some living space. In other words, maybe it’s time to consider and look for a roommate. 

Step one: Decide if you want to move in with strangers or friends. If you’re lucky, your best friend will have an extra bedroom and will want you to move in. But this is highly unlikely for most of us, and friends may not always be the best roommates. In fact, lots of friendships have actually ended after becoming roommates. So you need to seriously evaluate your friend regarding their lifestyle compatibility, just like a stranger before deciding to live together. Is it possible to find a total stranger you’d actually be comfortable living with? You may be surprised to discover that there are a number of websites set up for just that very thing. Similar to a dating website, these sites require you to complete a profile and can help you find someone with similar traits. You have several options. You can first look for a good roommate match and then you can start looking for a place to live together. Or maybe you already have an apartment and you’re just looking for someone to move in with you. Or maybe, you’re looking for someone who already has a place. 

Step two: Use an online roommate application site. A few examples of websites to look at when you’re searching for a roommate are: Roomie Match, Easy Roommate and Roomster. All these sites will create a profile for you and we’ll try to match you up with a person you can live with, hopefully. The application will ask you to fill in a lot of your personal information like your current living situation, the rental term, how much you can afford and your rental budget, the noise levels you’re acceptable with, if you’re sharing your unit, security, and several more questions. As with most roommate and research websites, there’s a free option and one you’ll have to pay for, which gives you more benefits and access. 

Step three: Important questions to ask potential roommates. First, why are they looking to move? Maybe they were evicted from their last place for making too much noise. Would you really want to live with someone like that? What do they do for a living? If they work from home and are always underfoot, it may not be ideal for you, especially if you work from home as well. But having someone at home everyday might be a bonus. They can accept deliveries, meet the cable guy and do any other chores you can try and pawn off. If you’re lucky, you may find someone who works the opposite shift from you. They sleep during the day and are gone all evening. This would give you both plenty of opportunities to have the place to yourself. If you both work the same shifts, you may need to talk about setting up a bathroom schedule so you’re not fighting over the shower every morning. What kind of sleeping habits do they have? Is she/he a morning person? Or do they tend to stay up all night? You don’t want your sleep disrupted by someone who is watching TV until all hours of the night, when you have an early morning shift the next day. 

Can they give you a deposit? If you select a roommate and he or she skips out on town after a few months, leaving you with the full amount of rent to pay, it’s wise to have a deposit on hand. What is their rental history? If they tell you stories about their horrible ex roommates, this could be an indicator that they have an issue with them themselves. Maybe they had bedbugs in their last apartment or if they’re reluctant to tell you anything, maybe you should look a little closer. Here’s a tip. Ask for a reference or two from a former roommate, landlord, or maybe even their work colleagues. Be sure to follow up on the references, preferably by phone or email, just like any job applicant. You might even want to do a credit or criminal record check just to be safe. If your potential roommate makes a scene, it could indicate a potential problem. 

Step four: Once you find the perfect roommate, it’s a good idea to put things in writing. If possible, create a roommate agreement and get it signed on. Include all the things you’ve discussed and agreed upon, so there are no questions in case any situation arises. Sharing your home with a roommate isn’t always what you’ve dreamed of, but if funds are tight or accommodations are in short supply, a good roommate can turn out to be just the right solution.