Living with flatmates can be an incredibly fun and rewarding experiences that everyone should try at least once. After all, it could be the beginning of wonderful friendships and those great stories that you will tell to your grandchildren. But just like all good things in life, it usually takes compromises and patience to make it work. Check out our tips and tricks for turning the stranger that you call flatmate into the flatmate you call BFF.

1. Set and follow guidelines

Firstly, agree on some guidelines right away. You’ll need to discuss and see eye to eye on the most important everyday activities: cleaning, air conditioning and heat, noise levels, shared meals, allergies, and so on. The more things you can agree on, the sooner flatmate bliss will set in.

2. Learn about new countries and cultures

If you and your flatmate are from different countries, then enjoy the cultural diversity with all its perks! There might be some cultural differences and language barriers at the start, but you’ll learn so much just from being around each other – including new foods, new music, and new vocabulary.

3. Make time for that beauty sleep

If we don’t sleep enough, our mood, energy level, and performance suffer. In a perfect world, you’d both be morning or night persons, but try to respect each other’s sleeping schedule and habits as much as possible. If you’re up late watching a movie or listening to music, just pop on some headphones and everyone’s happy.

4. Discover that headphones = happiness

About those headphones – they were probably invented by someone who had flatmates. You may love blasting show tunes on repeat, but that doesn’t mean your roomie shares that passion.

5. Respect the schedule

Share your schedules with each other to make it easier to be considerate of plans, meetings, or assignments. If your flatmate has to study for an important exam, it’s probably not a good idea to invite the floor for a dance party.

6. Make space for personal space

If your roomie is wearing headphones while staring at their phone, they most likely don’t want to talk about their day. And don’t take it personally if they lock the door to their room – even the most social person needs a little space every now and then.

7. Remember that sharing is (usually) caring

Remember, just because you share a space doesn’t mean you share a closet or pantry. But if you’ve got two cookies left in the pack, it’s always a good idea to offer one to your flatmate. (A wise person once said that sharing sweets is the first step to friendship.)

8. Clean up after yourself

Your mom isn’t around, but you need to be on your best behaviour anyway. You never know when friends, family or landlords come by for a spontaneous visit. Nobody wants to have a reputation as the sloppy flatmate, after all.

9. Want to a new flatmate?

Sometimes, life happens. We like to change things up and try something new, like trying to find a new flatmate or move into a new place to meet a new flatmate. If that's the way you feel, check out iROOMit. You can download the app on iOS or Android, or visit our website. We can help you find a flatmate in New York City, Miami, San Francisco, Los Angeles & many more cities across North America, USA & Canada coast-to-coast.