Renting a room in a shared house will mean that usually there will be at least two other tenants that will also be living in the same property. In some cases the number of other sharers could be as high as 5 or 6 and in some cases we know of landlords with properties with even more bedrooms in the house than that.

However many people share the communal areas of the property, it is important that everyone understands some basic house rules to ensure that everyone gets on with each other and that everyone can enjoy living in the property together. In the contracts that we issue to all our tenants every rule or guideline is documented however some basic principles apply.

 

1) Respect the privacy of your fellow house mates.

Not every tenant will work exactly the same houses. Some will work night shifts, some will have days off during the week and some people work weekends. It is important to get to know the working patterns of your fellow house mates so that you can understand when they might want their own privacy or time to be quiet, rest and sleep etc. There is nothing worse than having people that don’t respect others and cause problems simply by being selfish. Having time in your room to do your own things is really important and you don’t want that privacy ruined by others that you live with.

 

2) Clean up after yourselves

It is not fair on your fellow house mates to go and use the communal areas and then just leave them in an untidy and dirty condition. You should leave all communal areas in the same or better condition than what you found them. The communal arras are there for everyone to use and it does not take much to tidy up after yourself and then leave it looking good for your other house mates when they want to use that space as well. That also applies to washing up – don’t just leave your things on the side and expect someone to do your washing up for you. Do it as you go along and others will do the same for you.

 

3) Personal belongings in the communal areas

Leaving your own personal belongings in the communal areas can cause plenty of arguments! If something is important to you, make sure you leave it in your room. Simply using the communal areas as extra storage space for your own stuff will just cause arguments and make the house look untidy. When things are left out in communal areas they can get lost or thrown away quite easily if no one is sure who it belongs to so to ensure a happy home please do not leave personal belongings in the communal areas.

 

4) Contribute to the house and get to know your fellow house mates

Renting a room in a property does not mean that you can just ignore your contribution to the general running of the house. There are some very basic tasks that you can do to ensure the house runs smoothly like putting the rubbish out on collection day, doing the recycling, stocking up with things like washing up liquid etc. If everyone puts a little bit into the general running of the house it can make it a real enjoyable place to live. Getting to know your other housemates will also ensure that you understand a bit about them as people (as we are all different) and find out what is important to them and you can find and make some great friends when you rent a room in a shared house.

If you would like to rent a room in Chelmsford then please look at our Latest Availability here

If you have any questions or would like to make an enquiry then please contact us