Tips on Discussing Cleaning/Clutter With Your Roommates

Sharing a living space with one or more roommates can often be a difficult, but also rewarding experience. It is nice to have roommates to help chip in on the bills, and also to spend time with, but sometimes when you combine many different personalities under one roof-you may find that you each are used to different living habits or ideas thereof. This article will help provide you with some tips on discussing cleaning and preventing clutter and/or messes in your household while sharing space with one or possibly even multiple roommates, all the while hopefully preventing conflict while doing so.
- Define your definitions and expectations of clean early on- One of the best things to do when moving in with roommates is to sit down with them when you are first moving in and discuss what you all expect from one another in regards to cleaning common areas in the household and whether chores should be done daily, weekly, monthly, etc. Discussing this and setting expectations for everyone ahead of time can help prevent issues and conflicts further down the road.
- Discuss a cleaning schedule/chore wheel-After you and your roommate(s) have discussed with one another what your expectations are on keeping common areas of the household clean, it may help to break down a list of typical chores and cleaning tasks that will need completed each day, week, and month to keep your unit neat and tidy. After preparing this list, you can assign these tasks to one another and switch them up each week/month to make sure everyone is equally contributing to their share of the chores in the household. This can help make sure all tasks are being done and that everyone is equally contributing to the cleaning, as well as making it fair to all roommates since the schedule will be in a rotation to assure each person has their turn in the less-than-loved chores that need completed.
- Have weekly/monthly roommate meetings to hold each other accountable-If you have had a roommate in the past, you may have had a situation where things started out great in the beginning, but slowly began to decline as time went on. One of the best ways in preventing this is to discuss and set weekly or monthly meetings with your roommate(s) ahead of time when you first move-in together and make sure that you always find a time to hold those meetings! During this short discussion together, you can make sure you are holding each other accountable for completing all household tasks, or discuss any concerns you may have if one of you may be lacking. However, you will want to make sure to discuss any concerns as respectfully as possible to avoid any friction, and remember that you are living and sharing this space together so it is best to work together with one another to care for and take pride in this space as your own.
- Show appreciation when roommates are helping- Although you are all sharing the household together and should all equally be contributing to keeping the common areas clean and clutter free, it helps to show appreciation when a roommate is doing their part to keep up with the chores in the house and/or are even going above and beyond to keep your living space looking nice and tidy! Take the time to thank your roommate when you notice them doing the dishes, taking out the trash, or re-organizing that cluttered storage closet, just so that they know they are appreciated and that it is not going unnoticed. If you are feeling extra generous, you may even get them a small gift as a token of appreciation-bake them some goodies, leave a small note thanking them for all that they do around the house, or even leave them a $10 gift card to Starbucks (or their favorite store). Something minor like this can show that you appreciate a roommate for the work they are already doing, or may even be used as a bargaining chip to help in a situation where you aren’t sure how to motivate a roommate into keeping up with their current chore schedule without causing conflict.
Living with roommates, there may be many different situations and instances that occur that will affect everyone in the household, and housekeeping seemingly is the number one area to cause the most friction. However, by keeping open communication between everyone, maintaining a proper cleaning schedule, and by following some cleaning tips, hopefully you will find a plan that works best for you and all of those in your home, while also keeping a clutter-free living space. There are often times where you may move into a house with roommates you have never lived with before, and you may find that your house-keeping habits are not in sync with those of your roommate(s). It can be challenging to attempt to change your roommate’s behaviors or habits but you want to remember to never be hostile while expressing any concerns, keep an open mind, and to attempt to give your roommate enough time to adapt to the change in circumstances. Knowing the best tactics and tone to take when discussing these concerns with one or more roommates is essential to ensure a happy outcome for the both of you and your living situation.
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