So you’ve posted an ad and had a few requests to see the house you’re offering to rent out. That’s a good start. But now it’s time to reveal the applicants DEEPEST, DARKEST secrets through an intensive, one-on-one interview to get down to basics. Like will they be willing to play barbies when your nieces come over? Or take you on late night Maccas runs? Will they put pants on when your parents are over? These are the best places to start. Go from there.
And now for some more realistic ones.
1. Do you smoke?
A crucial question. If there are rules in your building about smoking, then you’re going to have to follow them. And if you personally aren’t a fan of having a secret-smoker you know, smelling like smoke, then you might want to buy air freshener ASAP if you’re thinking of giving them the place.
2. How do you feel about pets?
So you’ve got a teacup Pomeranian/Husky/Maltese terrier running around and yapping at your heels. You’re going to have to make sure your new flatmate is an avid pet-lover because you know they’re going to have to take it outside at least once to… relieve itself.
3. Do you drink?
This is how you figure out whether they’re a casual red wine on Friday type of person or a fool-blown alcoholic. Trust us, you’re going to want to know the difference.
4. What are your feelings towards cleaning?
This is an obvious one. You don’t want to be stuck doing the dishes/taking out the bin/mopping/dusting and generally being a responsible adult all alone. You’re going to get pretty tired picking up crunched-up Doritos from between the lounge every night. Make sure they know what a broom is.
See also:Â INTERVIEWING POTENTIAL FLATMATES
5. Do you consider food everyone in the houses property?
LABELS ARE EVERYTHING. If your new flatmate is a sharer than you’re going to need to make sure if you want to keep that lasagne all to yourself you label it. Otherwise, prepare to open lots of empty Nutella jars you bought last week.
6. What’s your worst habit?
You just don’t want to be walking in on someone clipping their toenails every second day or eating all their food with their fingers. Including pasta. Life just isn’t worth those kind of surprises.
You should probably also ask them about their job, family life, and financial stability to get an all round perspective of the person you’re going to be spending 99% of your time with. And if the walls are thin, ask about their snoring to.
