December 02, 2004

• $150 a month? My share is $700 a month, and that's with a roommate.
• My current situation is pretty good - four of us in a huge family home in North Brunswick, i pay A$436/mth rent, plus bills, and we buy our own food (not wholly ideal but ok) I have a backyard. That's all that matters - and there's something amazing about stumbling home at 6am, orbiting somewhere around mars, and sacking out in that backyard with a big rollie'o'happiness and watching the sun come up through big, wide 'happy night' eyes...
• In the past I have shared, but as I become more and more weird and crusty over the years due to something or other syndrome, I hate people. Therefore I will not share with you, that ice cream is mine. Currently I share my house with a chicken called tooky and a cat called conrad. Neither of these fuckers will clean up after themselves or pay rent. P.S. curious george posts are cheap.
• Can I move in? Jesus, $150 a month? NEVER LEAVE THAT PLACE!!!
• i share a 4 bedroom with 3 others in los angeles, have my own personal art studio (converted garage) in the back, plus there are 2 apartments in the back, a 4bedroom and a 2 bedroom...and a real chill patio area with plants that i set up back there...for the most part all cool, nice, fun young people...rent around 450+utils...it ROCKS! great creative vibes
• Yeah, I really lucked out. I moved in after getting in an altercation with a nutso housemate in the house next door, moved into the place I'm in now, six months after that the manager left, leaving me in charge as manager. My job? First of each month I say "Hey Amigos, rent in the closet?" Usually everyone already has it there, I pick up the phone, call the owner, say "rent's in" and I'm done being manager for the month... The place is actually in pretty good shape, the only down side is that I have to go to a laundromat to wash clothes, but everything else is pretty cool. The housemates all have different schedules so we hardly see each other, which means that for the most part if feels like I have the whole house to myself. Great lake view too!!! Everyone else pays around $225.00 to $250.00. Sometimes I end up getting the wrong housemate into the place, but I've never had a problem getting them out. And thankfully everyone feels really guilty if cleaning and vacuuming falls behind so I don't have to crack the whip too much on that. I've been here since 1988-1989. Recently the owner's son took over and he's upgraded the electrical and done a few other things as well. In addition to that we used to have a Learjet pilot living upstairs that paid for a big renovation in two of the bedrooms and hallway which were all repainted, recarpeted and had sconce lighting installed. Schweet!!!
• I'm hoping to install a deck out back before summer and who knows.... Hot Tub?
• I shared a few flats with a few people before I got hooked up with my long-term partner and now wife. On the whole, it's good. But it can be quite the hike to find people with the same views on "clean", "tidy", and the like as you (I'm not a neat freak, I don't much mind a mess, but I don't have any time for encrustations of filth), pull their weight around the house, and pay their share of the bills.
• I 've done both. I live alone now, but I'm moving soon and will probably share (for financial reasons, but also I get lonely).
• $150, that`s going to be hard to beat. I rent out a room in my 800 sq ft "ranchette", for $300, utils paid. I find the problem with renting low, you tend to get an over-proportionate group of alcoholics and crackheads with serious behavioural society problems. err,,, not that I haven`t been down that dead end street,,, muse, muse, muse
• Can't deal with roommates anymore, not after 15 years of them. The biggest luxury in my life is not having them, which is why I'll pay the $776 to live by myself. I don't drink, own a car, have a life, but by GOD, I have my 400 square feet to myself. Except for those fucking cats. Love the kitties. Hate the kitties. Love the kitties...
• What exactly is arts & crafts-style anyway? I get a mental image of kindergarteners building a house out of construction paper and macaroni. That can't be right (.....................can it?)
• Had room mates before, loved the concept hated the fact I got ripped off more times I can count (one lightened my bank account by about $2,000 because I believed the promises lies) exppii re: arts and crafts. Think William Morris, Frank Lloyd Wright (similar style) something along these lines. If I recall correctly it was in response to the mass production of goods and a desire to get back to things that were handmade, involved craftsmanship and nature. (been a long time since I had to do research on the subject - otherwise google 'arts and crafts style' or 'craftsman style' both should have plenty of into available)
• I'm a member of staff in a university hall of residence. I get free rent on a flat plus all my bills, plus a T1 internet connection in exchange for making sure the students don't descend into squalor or set the building on fire. No more than 2 hours work a week.
• I would kill to get a place like biffa's. Keeel. Staying in an en-suite room with six other housemates on one floor. Sorta like a dorm, only it's privately owned, and most of the students are either final-years or postgrads, which makes the boozing, partying and late-night rackets a little less frequent. Except for one girl who brings her boyfriend round at all hours, and makes a helluva noise making sure we know exactly what they're doing. It's pretty expensive (
• Retank "I find the problem with renting low, you tend to get an over-proportionate group of alcoholics and crackheads with serious behavioural society problems." -------------------------------------- Yeah, I've had similar problems here. Thankfully now it's a pretty stable bunch, I'm trying to rent to older men, so now I've got an accountant, retired jeweler, a middle-aged guy from Guatamala and a hispanic-american kid who fancies himself as the next 'Bukowski' but who's only talent seems to be stealing bicycles... Of course, he's the most likely one to get the boot in the short term... Next time around I think I'm going to try to convince the owner to *raise* the rent just to keep out the low-life. Just so long as I keep my cheap rent...
• $300 + electric. Alone. Shoebox. (Efficiency, which is realestateese for "shoebox.") Wouldn't trade it for the world. Once I got a taste of freedom, I completely lost the willingness to justify my every damn movement to another person. I do what I want, in the order that I want and at the time that I want, and don't have to worry about being acceptable or cool, or being harassed because somebody thinks my clothes are stupid or the movies I like are dorky (both true stories). I live on my own terms and do what makes me happy. I've never been better. ...this is also reason seven why I don't date.
• I lived in a house with 6 other women when I was in college, and I hated it. I was supposed to share an apartment with my best friend for our senior year, but at the last minute his fucktard roommate decided he wasn't leaving, so I was stuck moving in with 6 women I didn't know. People suck.
• I am rapidly becoming terrifically depressed about my rent. Jesus. I bet you people don't even have to dodge bullets or anything to get to your cars. I know somebody in MANHATTAN who gets a better deal on rent than I do. God. Couldn't deal with roommates tho.
• When I first heard about the shared housing situation I was kind of a bit put off by it, but after looking around I realized it really wasn't the bad. The important thing is finding a group of people that you can live with. I tend to avoid the 'communal household' situations where everyone is expected to participate in communal meals, communal get-to-gethers, etc. I just like to go my own way and wish everyone the best in going theirs.
• I share a 4 bedroom house with 3 guys. Since I'm sleeping with one of them, we have a guest/computer room. It's great. We are all science nerds and tend to get along well. occasionally there are problems with the stingy one or the messy one, but nothing major. I think the key for us is having busy lives and lots of physical space (it's a big house). I used to share a small apartment with two other girls, and they were fun, but not so responsible. It got annoying dealing with bounced checks and drunken pancake-making at 3am. Still, I'd do it again to live walking-distance from work in San Francisco for $500/month.
• I have one of the all-time Housemates From Hell stories which I may tell here later if my antidepressants work well enough. In the end, the roomies refused to move out or pay rent when I got out, and now their eviction is on MY record, so getting a conventional rental is near impossible. Right now, I'm staying with my old/retired/psychotic father and trying to look for other housing arrangements, but I'm more than a little intimidated by the whole process. Maybe if somebody who knew me from MoFi had a spare room... AM I HINTING LOUD ENOUGH?
• I'm about to put an ad in the paper and try to rent a bedroom in my Arts & Crafts bungalow from January to June. I'm freaked out at the thought of sharing the bathroom & the house with a total stranger, but I need the money, and how bad can it be? *imagines how bad it could be* Well, maybe it won't be that bad. I hope. I haven't had a non S.O. roommate in like 10 years, so we'll see. Western North Carolina mountains, email for info. Must like, really like, dogs and cats, yet not have any.
• I took in my then-boyfriend's close childhood friend when she called announcing her sudden need to divorce and find a place to live with her two dogs and cat. Assuming transition of a few months, I gave her the largest bedroom in my house (the one I was in), and even helped her move in. After a year where she ran through all of my pity and all of my single malt scotch (mixing it with her Pepsi), I started charging her $250 a month in the hopes that she'd get the hint and move. Finally tired of the untrained boston terrier, the Internet chat rooms she'd be glued to from 5pm to 3am, and the fact that she'd started complaining-- nonstop-- about how boyfriend and I were acting like she was burdening our lives. After *two years*, she moved out with very little notice and not a single "thank you". It's been a long time since, but still it takes a great deal to ruin what seem now like all very, very good days.
• I shared houses all through university and generally had a blast. We always had something approximating the same group of friends and we got on well and had a lot of the same interests. We were the antithesis of the typical students in that we generally left the places we lived in nicer than we found them, trying to break the "scungy student" mould. Then, when #2 and I moved to California, we got a couple of boarders in to help with the rent. The first one was a friend of mine from college and drove me nuts with her flakiness, disorganisation and general messiness. She eventually moved out and we managed to remain friends, but it was close. That was about the time I had to acknowledge that I was shockingly passive-aggressive. :) Then the second boarder was like having a kid around. I'd have to remind her to go to class, wake her up in the mornings, make sure she ate properly. She was a sweet kid but was determined to run herself into the ground working too hard, and dating people that were bad for her, and I found myself too wrapped up in her personal life. Plus she was addicted to Ikea. So the idea here is that there's a time in your life when shared housing is great. But once you've lived alone and formed your own habits, it gets harder and harder to live with others. I'm so over-talkative today.
• mygothlaundry Make sure you draw up some rules for the household, you'll be surprised how easy it makes things for you if you're very clear about what's acceptable, what is not. The current crop of housemates know *exactly* what I expect in terms of cleanliness, latest/earliest hours they can make noise, etc. If you would like, I can send you my rules that I drew up. --------------------------------- tracicle I can totally relate to the whole 'passive/aggresive thing, I just let things go for far to long before I 'esplode', which is why I wrote up the rules. My current pet peeve is forgetting to wipe up the counter or stove after you've prepared a meal... I removed the dish rack a couple of months ago when some of the housemates 'forgot' to put dishes away after washing. Now they're forced to wash, dry *and* put their dishes away. Bliss.
• Maybe that's why my earlier flatting efforts worked: we had a set roster (complete with pretty pictures) for cooking, cleaning and washing the dishes, so the communal areas were always tidy. Our rooms were our business and it worked perfectly. It felt different having a boarder because I felt less able to tell them what chores they had to do. Plus the boarders were less inclined to get into 24-hour network games of Doom and Warcraft. :)
• I've been doing the house share thing my whole adult life and it honestly keeps getting better and better. My best living situation was with three other people in an old farm house co-op. I was pretty leary about sharing food with other people (I'm an only child- I'm only willing to share so much) but it worked out great. Because there were four of us we could buy a huge variety of food - and it rarely cost more than $35 bucks a piece for a month. Currently I'm sharing a two bedroom - we each pay $300 a month plus about $40 for utilities - its nice and cheap, but I miss having lots of people around.
• mk1gti - on that hot tub, be sure to get one that works with the electrical outlets you already have. A lot of places will tell you that their hot tubs that require 16 amps can just be plugged into the wall. Uh-uh. And new wiring is muy spensivo.
• yentruoc The house is pretty old, but thankfully the owner's son is in construction and he's got a good buddy who's an electrician. He just recently replaced the old fuse box with a breaker box and did a bunch of rewiring, so if we pursue the hot tub option, Howie's going to be very closely consulted about all the ins'n'outs.
• Oh, as for ideals? Where I am now - cheap, quiet neighborhood, and not having to justify my every damn action to some snarky bastard who doesn't even chip in for *#(&$@(#*&ing rent - plus a pet. :/ I would love to have a pet. Not allowed, though. bitter? what makes you say that?
• I have shared with quite a lot of people in my time. And after all that I have discovered that I detest people overall and I can't live with anyone. People also have a difficult time living with me. Mainly becuase they don't understand that I am not their mother and I won't cook for them or clean up after them. I hate rosters, because everyone I've ever lived with blames me for not doing enough, then leaves a half eaten chicken carcasses on the bench for a week. Or pees on the bathroom floor and lets it stagnate. Or they just HAVE to play a Hole CD really loud at 7am on a sunday. Or they bring over a friend, who brings with them a few other friends that no one really knows and the next thing you know your home is full of wieners breaking your stuff and saying "do you know the other guy that lives here is an asshole?" without knowing that I'm that asshole. I live on my own and I like it. There is no super chirpy bastard asking me how I am and if I want to 'talk'. I'm happy being a grumpy bear in my own home, it makes going outside much more fun. When I'm outside, it's more fun because I know that I won't have to deal with them when I go home. The only time I'd share again is with a significant other, but that is not very likely to happen. I think that might have sounded bitter......
• jacbo: addition! when one of them plays goldfrapp's first album (you know, the one with that really annoying whistling) at not-quite-maximum volume for 18 hours straight on a sunday starting at 7am or locks themselves in the loungeroom for three days playing portishead at the same volume. the vegetarian who works as a pizza delivery driver brings home 8 family size meat pizzas for the only meat eater in the house (me) and gets really pissed off when they're not all eaten within two days. so locks himself in the loungeroom and plays massive attack at maximum volume for three hours. yay for former housemates. oh, that and the flatmate who told me to my face that he wanted to 'hatefuck' one of my best (girl) friends.
• I've been a roommate most of my adult life (with time out for homeownership). Most of that was spent in San Francisco, where the flats are large and the population of near-broke adults even larger. I've seen it configured a bunch of ways. Some people had an equal responsibility to the landlord, some had a master tenant (more or less codified in San Fran law) which required one tenant to be on the lease, pay the rent on behalf of the household, and be legally responsible if some roommate fucked up with the rent. I was a master tenant for six or so years, and tho it put me in a no-man's-land between the pro-tenant Tenants Union (who considered me a landlord) and the rent board (who didn't recognize my responsibility/authority), it worked out pretty well. Because rent was wholly my responsibility, the landlord had no say in who was chosen as a roommate. That worked backward, too; when it was time to evict someone, I had no back-up. Generally there were three inhabitants. Everytime I and the existing roommate interviewed a prospective newcomer, I made this point: roommating is a contract. We're not living in the same place because we love each other, we're living in the same place because we're poor. So let's have as much mutual respect as possible. Clean up after yourself in the common rooms, don't make noise after ten pm, and if you have a problem with another inmate, bring it up before there's BIG ATTITUDE choking the air out of the hallway. And, no chore wheel.
• Awww, com'on, goofyfoot. I really like spinning the chore wheel.
• BCo-habitation horror stories: The flatmate who never washed, and whose girlfriend thought the proper way to dispose of tampons was to wrap them in toilet paper and (a) leave them lying on the window sill of the bathroom or (b) throw them out the bathroom window. Onto the landing. Where you stood while opening the main door to the house.