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Six tips that will make life easier as a roommate

Whether you have just begun sharing a house, or have been moving among apartment shares for years, here are six tips that will help you out.

Bill splitting

There are several apps out there that allow you to helpfully split bills with your roommates. They're a bit of a Big Brother for bill paying and will make it clear who is trying to shamelessly flake on payments! Try our friends over at Locatable, who have just launched their new Splittable app or check out Splitwise.

Netflix, BBC iPlayer and maybe a personal TV (if you are feeling extravagant)

TV show clash is a sad but regular occurrence. However, sometimes it can be extreme: a Game of Thrones finale at the same time as a big football game. Potentially causing your roommates to battle to the death for the remote control. In these situations having your own small TV or Netflix account can be a God send. So when TV schedulers have decided to engage in pure sadism it is possible to just quietly retreat to your room and avoid the carnage.

Contents insurance

It may be wise to get contents insurance. It's impossible to tell when a disaster may strike and you are better off insured than left with ashes! You can find good contents insurance at Endsleigh

Mini Fridge (with a lock)

We’ve all had that crazy kleptomaniac roommate, who doesn’t seem to understand the meaning of ownership. However with your own personal fridge you can avoid the terrors of half eaten sandwiches. Plus, it means you have easy access when you feel like a cheeky midnight snack.

(Avoid passive aggressive notes, they never seem to work out well.)

Roommate Night

Cool any tensions and get to know each other better. This can be as simple as chilling out and watching a movie at home together or dinner and a night out. After all, being on good terms with each other will make life significantly easier in the long run.

Earplugs - very, very good earplugs

Let’s face it - being woken up at 2:00 am, to horrific noises emanating from the adjacent room can be pretty annoying at best, and at worst cause permanent mental scars! Save yourself the sleepless nights and invest in high quality ear plugs.

No more trying to awkwardly cover your head with a pillow.

Written by: Afam Okoh