Roommates. Can’t live with them, can’t live without them… especially when you could never afford the rent of even a studio apartment on your twenty-something salary. So here you are. Maybe you were lucky enough to find a friend, or even a friend of a friend, who was looking for the same housing situation as you, or maybe you had to resort to Craigslist. After the search for a roommate (or two) is said and done, here are the pros and cons of cohabitating in your twenties.
1. Human Interaction
Pro:
There is another person or multiple persons! You are not alone and there is less of a need to be nervous that the creaking you hear in the kitchen is a ghost. You have a ready-to-go drinking partner who can commiserate about the daily grind. And you have someone to let you in when you lock yourself out bringing the trash down. Even if you aren’t besties, it’s nice to know someone is there.
Con:
Sometimes you could use a little less interaction and feel the need to avoid conversations. Your roommate’s weekly skype session with their mom, on speaker no less, is something you could do without, and you wish their weirdo friend didn’t come over every weekend. Also, you are never really alone. When you finally are, it is the best 10 mins/ hour/ weekend of your life and you question why you really needed a roommate. Sometimes you just want to be lying naked on the couch after your post-gym shower.
2. Sharing
Pro:
Sharing is caring! Having roommates means sharing almost everything; after all you are sharing an apartment. Your bills are divided, you have access to more closets, and inevitably you will share food and alcohol. Not only is this cost-effective in your twenties, but it is convenient as well. Sharing is probably one of the main reasons you decided to get a roommate in the first place.
Con:
There are just as many situations to make you regret sharing. Timing is not always perfect – they will run the dishwasher right before you’re about to get in the shower, turning the water cold. They will want to wake up and want to have a productive Saturday while you are lying in bed dying of a hangover. They will take the shirt you were going to wear and you will never see it again.
3. Taste in TV shows
Pro:
When you have roommates, there is more brain power and more of a chance that someone remembered to DVR the new season of Real Housewives when you realize you forgot. Not to mention, half the fun of watching a show is discussing it with someone besides your followers on Twitter. This also helps when you need to decide what to watch on a Friday night in and you both know the only real decision is Mean Girls for the 28,407th time.
Con:
It seems the DVR is always full because everyone has a million different shows to tape and yet will probably never watch before you move out. Did someone really need to record Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets when there are 3 copies of the DVD in the apartment? There’s also that one roommate who tends to have a monopoly on the main TV in the living room and continually waste its potential by watching Wheel of Fortune every night as they make dinner.
4. Dividing cleaning responsibilities
Pro:
Thank god your roommate emptied the dishwasher because you just weren’t feeling it this morning before you left for work. It’s cool when it works out that you hate taking out the trash, but don’t mind cleaning out the sink and wiping down the counters. And it’s always super clutch when your roommate remembered to pick up more toilet paper from Costco right after you realize you’re on your last roll. As the saying goes, many hands make light work.
Con:
Levels of cleanliness vary. Even if someone says they are ‘clean,’ what bothers one person, may not faze the other, and vice versa. As you empty the dishwasher for what feels like the third time that week, you wonder if anyone else even cares. Why is it always you putting the apartment back together again after a Saturday night party?
5. Food
Pro:
The apartment smells so good when your roommate cooks dinner, even if they’re just marinating chicken to have with salad. It’s even better when they feed you whatever they’re making because you don’t feel like cooking, as usual, and would rather just have cereal for dinner. Never underestimate the leftovers and snacks that are always in abundance when you have roommates.
Con:
There are few things more heart-breaking than when your roommate’s Seamless order comes before yours. Or when it’s their boyfriend ringing the bell and not your food delivery. The worst is when your roommate decides they want to open a can of tuna for dinner; that smell just refuses to leave the apartment. Then there is the century old mystery of who ate the last slice of your leftover pizza because of course your roommate is denying it. Food can definitely cause some large arguments.
