Housing Hacks
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Housing Hacks: how to be a good housemate
15 April 2024
Do your part to work together
In the fourth and final article of our Housing Hacks series, we share tips and advice to help you be a good housemate so you can maintain a happy life at home.
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Set yourself up for success
Know your lease
It's always important you understand the details of your lease, including when you live in a share house with others. Make sure you know when your lease begins and ends, if it is fixed term (e.g. for 6 or 12 months) or periodic (month to month), and whether you're coming into the agreement at the beginning or part way through.
Knowing what kind of tenant or occupant you are will help inform you of your rights and responsibilities, and obligations as a housemate or flatmate. Always check your lease to review specific details relevant to that property and ask your real estate agent if you have any questions.
Types of tenants and occupants
When you are a co-tenant, that means everyone in the house has signed a lease. Everyone on the lease shares the responsibility of paying bills and rent on time, taking care of the property's condition and fulfilling the other conditions of the lease.
You can start a lease with multiple co-tenants and add or remove co-tenants to an existing lease, but you must have written permission from the landlord.
If you are a sub-tenant, that means you have signed a sub-lease with a head-tenant. The head-tenant is the only person who has signed a lease. This means the head-tenant is the sole person responsible for things like paying rent on time and maintaining the property. The head-tenant must also have the landlord's written permission to sub-lease the property to additional tenants.
A boarder or lodger is someone who resides in a registered boarding house. If you're boarding or lodging, you should have signed a written occupancy agreement between yourself and the boarding house agreeing to the rules of the property. Often, you will only have the right to occupy your room and shared facilities like the kitchen or bathroom.
Setting up a cleaning roster is an easy way to balance the load and keep the peace.
Establish house rules
When you move into a property, it's important to set clear expectations and boundaries with your housemates. A set of house rules allows you to clearly outline these expectations and keep everyone accountable for their actions. Have an open discussion early on and try to set reasonable rules that everyone is happy to follow, and discuss what will happen if a house rule is broken.
If you're coming into a shared house that already has rules, clarify the rules and expectations, see if there is room for change or flexibility, and ask what happens to resolve issues when someone breaks a house rule.
Sharing expenses
Figuring out how to handle shared expenses can sometimes feel like an awkward conversation, but it's crucial for keeping your household running smoothly. Most rent and bills are expected to be paid all at once, whether one person takes the responsibility to pay the full amount on behalf of everyone, or if each tenant transfers their share to the landlord or real estate agent individually.
Discuss how your household plans to pay rent on time and how you will split everyday expenses like internet or electricity. Things like cleaning products and vacuums are items that are useful to everyone, so decide if one person is going to buy these items for everyone to use, if you will share the expense, or if everyone will purchase their own. If you want to find out more about managing your household expenses, check out our article on how to create and stick to a budget.
Managing the day to day
Chores
Everyone is different when it comes to chores, so ensuring everyone agrees to a schedule or process can prevent issues in the future. Generally, it's everyone's responsibility to keep the communal areas clean, neat and tidy. It might help to develop a schedule for who cleans the bathroom, vacuums the living room, or completes other necessary cleaning in communal areas. This ensures cleaning will be done regularly and fairly, and prevent one person from doing it all. Try to communicate if you are unable to complete a chore because you're going away or have other obligations. Offer to swap your chores with someone else, or double up on chores the following week.
Groceries
Every share house has different expectations around food and groceries. Some have communal groceries and others like to keep things separate by buying groceries individually. Make sure you are aware of how your household operates in terms of buying or sharing groceries, and be respectful of others' food. If you plan to have individual groceries, decide on a way to distinguish everyone's food, whether by using labels or having different sections of the fridge or pantry for different people.
If you decide to share groceries in your house, create a grocery budget and pick food everyone eats. For advice on getting groceries on a budget read our food hacks to help you save money and eat well.
Some share houses may be more social than others. It's important to respect others' needs and privacy.
Socialising
You may find some share houses will be more social than others. Some people will want to hang out in common areas together, while others prefer to keep to themselves. Talk about how social you enjoy being and don't feel bad if you want to keep to yourself while everyone else is socialising.
Make sure you are considerate of noise. Discuss when everyone else in the house would like peace and quiet, but also take care to not make huge amounts of noise without letting everyone else know, even if it is in the middle of the day. Some people might have different schedules to you or could be trying to get work done.
If you want to have other people over, let your housemates know and check that they are okay having visitors. They might not want you having a party at the house the night before they have an assignment due, for example.
Resolving conflicts
If you and a housemate are experiencing conflict, it's better to resolve it as quickly as possible, so you can continue to enjoy your home life. Try to talk about the problem face-to-face and take accountability for anything you could have done wrong or contributed to the problem. Try to be understanding of others' views and perspectives when resolving conflict, too – sometimes an issue arises out of something as simple as a misunderstanding.
If there has been an ongoing issue and you are unable to come to a conclusion, it may be time to get a third party involved. Another housemate, a mutual friend or an impartial mediator can bring a fresh set of eyes to help reduce tension and resolve an issue.
If there is a serious issue between you and your housemates or your landlord regarding your lease, rent or living conditions, you may be able to resolve this through the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal.
It's courteous to give your housemates as much notice as possible if you plan to move out, so they can fill your room quickly.
Moving out
There are a few things to consider when moving out of a share house. First, you need to find out how much notice you are required to give to the landlord. This will change depending on your lease type. Find out more about notice periods for ending your lease in our first Housing Hacks article: what to expect when renting in Sydney.
You also may want to find a replacement tenant if you are moving out part way through the lease. Try to give your housemates as much notice as possible, so if they want to find someone else to move in they can. Also make sure you find out when and how your bond or security deposit will be returned to you.
Packing
Once you have picked your moving date, make sure you let your real estate agent know, so that they can install relevant safety equipment if necessary, like padding in lifts if you live in an apartment building. When moving, ensure you take all of your belongings with you. If there are things you don't want anymore, it’s your responsibility to sell, gift, or dispose of them.
If you moved into a furnished room, check the contents and condition report to make sure everything that belongs in the room is there and in the same condition as you found it.
If you have purchased things communally in the house, discuss with your housemates what to do now that you are moving out – maybe you can 'buy out' the item and take it with you, or you can sell your share in it back to the house. And in the instance you purchased something personally for a communal area, let your housemates know that you purchased it and you intend to take it with you, so they can replace it if they need.
Cleaning
If it's just you moving out and your housemates are staying, clean your space thoroughly. At the end of a lease, you should leave the property in the same condition as it was when you moved in, to ensure you get your bond back but also to be considerate to current and future tenants.