Finding a good roommate is always important — even more so when you’re sharing a small space in the city. If you find a great person to live with, you could even gain a new best friend! But finding an great housemate is like finding the perfect spouse: It’s part instant chemistry, part hard work.
- Sleep Schedules: It may seem obvious, but getting those eight hours in every night is much easier said than done. Make sure that you and your housemate discuss each other’s daily sleep habits — you’ll regret not asking when the alarm goes off at 7 am.
- Sense of Humour: To be sarcastic, or not to be sarcastic? You’ll want to know whether you and your roommate will get along on a casual day-to-day basis. Can you make each other laugh? You won’t want to crack a knee-slapper only to unintentionally offend your new friend! You won’t want to crack a joke only to unintentionally offend your new friend!
- Cleanliness: When your future roommate claims he or she is “pretty clean,” you’ll want to check on what spectrum of “clean” that is. Two people may have very different definitions for what constitutes for clutter or filth.
- Interests: Your chances of befriending your roommate increase immensely when you have something in common — it can be something as small as the fact that you’re both avid “Game of Thrones” fans, or that you both love going to the gym to work out.
- Find out what your potential roommate expects to get out of their roommate (you!) and see how their expectations compare with yours. Some people want a roommate just as a way to cut the rent cost, with minimal interaction; some want people they can hang out with. Make sure expectations match. Be honest about your difficult qualities when answering your potential roomie’s questions about you.
