Renting with a mate - potential disaster/domestic heaven!?
Discussion
Heres the situation.
I've been away to Uni, lived out/rented for 4 years, ended up back with parents for a few years purely due to earnings. I feel far too old to be living at 'home', but dont earn anything like enough money to be able to buy anywhere or rent on my own. Outside of this option, I'm pretty much stuck at home and I dont like it.
Old mate (best mate really) is same age, never lived away from parents, earns a little more than me.
Previously never seen the point of moving out as he had it cushy at home, minmal board, everything done for him just was when he was a kid. He's now realising what I've been saying all along - 25 is too old to still be there and is keen to move on a little. He's seeing the 'value' in being skint but a bit more grown up!
We are considering renting together. I'm smart enough to know that this is not something to jump into, having had the experience before. However I also believe it could work well for us.
What things do we need to be thinking about - if we sit down for a proper discussion about it, what needs to be talked about? Examples off the top of my head -
- Contracts. We're both smart enough to know that while we are mates we need proper agreements between us to cover all sorts of what-ifs.
- Payments - how we would arrange our finances, bills, rent etc.
- What we can afford. Earning a bit less, and also having actually experienced it myself, I probably have a slightly more down to earth idea of what we/I can or cant afford. Certainly - for me its going to be a big stretch, at least until I can increase my income somehow.
- Whether it would actually work. Initially we actually seem to be agreeing on most things - we have similar values, similar levels of tidiness, same hobbies etc. He works nights, I work days, we would barely see each other through the week most likely.
- Both have partners (who also get on, its getting a bit 'friends'!), neither of which can move in (my G/F lives and works 50 miles away - in the future we'll probably end up living together but its not going to happen in the next 6 months ). But I know that partners staying over can become a sore point if not properly discussed.
- It will be short term, initially. He wants to 'try it', I've said that I reckon a 6 month contract would be fine. If we kill each other after 6 months, so be it.
- We both live and work in the same area, neither of us want to move away, just 'out'.
He's probably the only one of my friends with the right sort of common sense that I would trust this kind of thing to, so hopefully it might work out.
What else do we really need to think about before we even start looking? What have I missed, potential issues etc?
Thanks!
I've been away to Uni, lived out/rented for 4 years, ended up back with parents for a few years purely due to earnings. I feel far too old to be living at 'home', but dont earn anything like enough money to be able to buy anywhere or rent on my own. Outside of this option, I'm pretty much stuck at home and I dont like it.
Old mate (best mate really) is same age, never lived away from parents, earns a little more than me.
Previously never seen the point of moving out as he had it cushy at home, minmal board, everything done for him just was when he was a kid. He's now realising what I've been saying all along - 25 is too old to still be there and is keen to move on a little. He's seeing the 'value' in being skint but a bit more grown up!
We are considering renting together. I'm smart enough to know that this is not something to jump into, having had the experience before. However I also believe it could work well for us.
What things do we need to be thinking about - if we sit down for a proper discussion about it, what needs to be talked about? Examples off the top of my head -
- Contracts. We're both smart enough to know that while we are mates we need proper agreements between us to cover all sorts of what-ifs.
- Payments - how we would arrange our finances, bills, rent etc.
- What we can afford. Earning a bit less, and also having actually experienced it myself, I probably have a slightly more down to earth idea of what we/I can or cant afford. Certainly - for me its going to be a big stretch, at least until I can increase my income somehow.
- Whether it would actually work. Initially we actually seem to be agreeing on most things - we have similar values, similar levels of tidiness, same hobbies etc. He works nights, I work days, we would barely see each other through the week most likely.
- Both have partners (who also get on, its getting a bit 'friends'!), neither of which can move in (my G/F lives and works 50 miles away - in the future we'll probably end up living together but its not going to happen in the next 6 months ). But I know that partners staying over can become a sore point if not properly discussed.
- It will be short term, initially. He wants to 'try it', I've said that I reckon a 6 month contract would be fine. If we kill each other after 6 months, so be it.
- We both live and work in the same area, neither of us want to move away, just 'out'.
He's probably the only one of my friends with the right sort of common sense that I would trust this kind of thing to, so hopefully it might work out.
What else do we really need to think about before we even start looking? What have I missed, potential issues etc?
Thanks!
Cleaning, cleaning and cleaning.
I lived with two of my friends and this was the biggest cause of arguments.
One guy barely left his room, hardly ever ate in the house and have no idea what he did with his washing as I never saw it lying around. He caused no issues.
The other guy was a PITA! I would come home from work at 18:00 and spend nearly two hours cleaning the place.
He started work a 4:00 and was home by 13:00, in that time he would create mess in every room in the house and never clear it up.
I'm no clean freak, but I don't like to live in filth, I ended up moving out over it in the end, as did the other guy.
Lay down ground rules on day one.
I lived with two of my friends and this was the biggest cause of arguments.
One guy barely left his room, hardly ever ate in the house and have no idea what he did with his washing as I never saw it lying around. He caused no issues.
The other guy was a PITA! I would come home from work at 18:00 and spend nearly two hours cleaning the place.
He started work a 4:00 and was home by 13:00, in that time he would create mess in every room in the house and never clear it up.
I'm no clean freak, but I don't like to live in filth, I ended up moving out over it in the end, as did the other guy.
Lay down ground rules on day one.
Gassing Station | Homes, Gardens and DIY | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff