Renting a Flat with a Stranger? How to be the Perfect Flat-Mate
Sharing a flat in London can be stressful, but if you are conscientious by cleaning one in a while and don’t steal your flat-mates food you’re well on your way to being the perfect flat-mate.We’ve all heard stories of the trials and tribulations of the shared flat in London. Living with other people you don’t know from Adam can be difficult. At your interview your new flat-mates seemed great. They seemed polite, interesting, and genuinely nice people. But when you are forced to see these people every day it can be a very different story. The same two problems always seem to crop up.Nobody likes doing the dishes and no matter how long you stare at them they will not be cleaned by themselves. It is your responsibility to clean your dishes. If you come back from work and notice that they have been cleaned, rest assured that one of your flat-mates is lying on their bed counting to ten trying to resist the urge to suffocate you in your sleep. For the sake of world peace and your own personal safety clean up after yourself. Although you might believe that your flat-mate is a clean-freak , don’t kid yourself into thinking you can give them a dose of tough-love. They will not become a happier more rounded individual if you don’t clean. They’ll just hate you. The reality is that you’re probably very messy. I promise taking a few minutes to clean is worth it for communal harmony.Most people are nice but the human being has evolved so that if it doesn’t eat then certain survival instincts will kick in. Don’t ever steal your flat-mates food. Don’t fool yourself into thinking you’ll replace it and that they won’t even notice, you won’t and they will. Bread and milk will always be contentious issue in any flat in London. A cup of tea and a slice of toast in the morning is our god-given right as Brits. Don’t take that away from your flat-mates. When you finish the bread or the milk, go and buy another one. Feel free to set up a milk and bread and if it doesn’t work out you’re more than entitled to ‘have words’.The financial cost of renting a flat in London.Renting a flat in London can be stressful enough, so make yours and your flat-mates life that little bit less stressful by being the perfect flat-mate. Just be clean and don’t steal. It’s not that hard.

