Pia Bobeff
For many ANU students, it is a rite of passage to move out of college and into a sharehouse.
Whether it is to escape the second-rate (at best) meals provided by catered colleges, to escape the relentless nagging by parents at home, or to simply live out your ‘Friends’ fantasy of living with all your friends, share housing can be confusing and stressful to navigate.
Observer has sifted through all the information we could find and have obtained from our share house warriors to provide a comprehensive guide to finding a share house to hopefully make the process just that little bit less stressful.
STEP ONE: FINDING ROOMMATES
According to people currently residing in a share house, finding the right roommates is arguably the most important step.
If looking to live with a group of friends, it is important to determine early on whether you have the same living expectations and if you would be compatible to live with. In response to a questionnaire by the Observer, one share house warrior commented that “being a good friend does not mean you have the same household expectations of them”, and it is better to learn this sooner rather than later.
However, for some, living with strangers is the preferred option. Fortunately there are plenty of Facebook noticeboards dedicated to seeking new tenants, such as the Canberra Share Housing and Rooms for Rent page, which features posts looking for prospective roommates. The Queer Housing Canberra page is a good alternative for people from LGBTQI+ backgrounds who want to live with other members of the community.
With all things online, it is important to remain cautious of scams and to never hand over any important information before your first meeting. However, you never know, you might end up finding your next best friend.
No matter how you find your roommates, one share house warrior stressed that you must “vibe check” them. Another said, “trust your gut instincts if your potential roommate(s)’ aura is off”. After all, these are the people who you will be coming home to “when it hasn’t been your day, your week, your month, or even your year”.
STEP TWO: LOOKING AT PROPERTIES
Now that roommates are acquired, it is time to start looking for a property. With so many properties out there, it is hard to know where or when to start looking.
One way to find available properties is through Facebook groups. Users are constantly seeking tenants to move in or lease swap. Other sites such as Domain and Realestate.com are also a good place to start, as they allow you to filter through properties so that you can find something in your price range which also meets all your requirements.
The ACT Government’s “Rental Laws in Australia” guidelines mandate what information must be disclosed in rental advertisements. These include:
- “The rent at a fixed amount
- The Energy Efficiency Rating (EER) for the property
- Any special conditions, for example, if a tenant will need to seek permission to keep a pet
- If the premises can be made accessible for individuals with disability
- If the rental property complies with the ceiling insulation standard.”
One share house warrior commented that you should start looking at properties “at least [three] months before your intended move [in] date”. Starting the search early allows you to get a better understanding of what your non-negotiables are when it comes to property, i.e. a spacious kitchen, a big backyard, and what neighbourhoods you like.
From Observer’s enquiries most landlords are looking for people to move in almost right away. However, it does not hurt to ask whether they would be open to a later move in date.
According to the ACT Government’s guidelines, when visiting a property it is important to check the functioning of appliances, that the property meets the advertised description, and that there is mobile and internet connection.
In responses to the questionnaire, it was made evident the importance of checking for mould, as well as any damage the property has currently sustained and whether the landlord is willing to repair it before you move in. Share house warriors also recommend checking how many bathrooms there are, how many car spaces there are, the heating/cooling system, and how insulated the property is. Location was another important factor, with recommendations of checking how close the property is to bus stops, petrol stations, and shops, and the area’s crime rates.
It is also important to start a discussion with real estate agents and ask them about any upcoming properties on the market that meet your criteria.
STEP THREE: SIGNING A LEASE
The ACT Government’s guidelines define a lease as “a legal contract between a tenant and a lessor (the landlord)”. A co-tenancy occurs when there are multiple tenants listed on the lease and all tenants have the same rights and responsibilities.
A lease will include the names of the landlord and the tenant(s), the amount of rent and how it will be paid, the price of the bond, when the lease will start, and any special or standard terms.
See the Residential Tenancies Act 1997 for a list of standard terms.
Upon signing a lease, you should receive from your landlord a set of keys for each listed tenant, a copy of the signed lease, a bond and rent paid in advance receipt and two copies of the condition report.
As per the guidelines, the landlord cannot ask you to pay:
- a fee to inspect the property or to be given information about the availability of the property
- a holding deposit for the property
- to be given the keys to the property
- more than one bond for the property.
STEP FOUR: SHOUSE RULES
Now that you have found a property and signed a lease, the next step is to create a comprehensive set of rules and standards that you and your housemates will abide by.
However, in saying that, your roommate agreement does not have to be anywhere near as comprehensive as Sheldon and Leonard’s, and it is okay to vary the apartment’s temperature.
According to our questionnaire, it is important to “set your cleaning expectations early and actively communicate if it’s becoming an issue BEFORE it becomes too big”. Make sure to decide what food will be shared, whether there will be certain quiet times or spaces in the house, when people can come over and how much notice must be provided, and who will be responsible for what chores and when.
Make sure to determine your finances so you know who will be in charge of paying the bills, if you are sharing food, how much each person must contribute and how you are splitting the rent, whether it is an equal split or dependent on room size.
After all, communication is key, and compromise is a necessity for day-to-day life.
STEP FIVE: WHAT’S NEXT?
By now you should all be settled in, and what comes next is completely up to you!
But this author hopes that the experience lives up to all your expectations and that you have ever more fun than Rachel, Monica, Phoebe, Ross, Chandler and Joey.
Graphics by Nur Aisyah
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