Sharing Common Areas with Your Apartment Roommate

You may find that it’s easy enough to keep up your own room in your apartment, but what about maintaining common areas? Read on for our guide to maintaining harmony in shared spaces in your home with a few simple maintenance habits.

Set the rules
Whether you and your roommate are new to each other or are moving together into a new place, laying the ground rules early is a must. That doesn’t mean you need to create a draconian lists of do’s and don’ts, but it does require thinking carefully about the habits that drive you or your roommate crazy, and then getting those details out in the open. Living with a roommate requires compromise, so be reasonable and willing to work out differences for your mutual benefit.

To share or not to share?
Often, the biggest roommate disputes revolve around food. Money can be saved when roommates pool funds to buy in bulk, but if one of you has a significantly larger appetite than the other, someone will feel short-changed. Similarly, if one roommate has special dietary needs, whether by preference or due to food allergies or a health condition, be sure to respect the other by either not cooking certain foods on shared pots and pans or by not eating the other’s vegetarian, vegan, lactose-free, peanut-free, wheat-free or kosher food and beverages.

Everybody cleans
Another area for potential conflict is having a different tolerance for messiness than your roommate. Coming up with a regular cleaning routine and sticking with it can help by ensuring that common areas get clean before you or your roommate can get squeamish about the disorder. The best way to keep the workload fair is to have each roommate clean up after him or herself every day and then split the work on cleaning common areas such as the bathroom or kitchen.

Spend time together
The easiest way for petty resentments to get out of hand is for communication to break down. Don’t let that happen! Even if you and your roommate each lead separate, busy lives, find a way to do something fun together regularly, whether it is going to the farmer’s market, seeing a movie, or having a dinner party. Creating a bond through shared experience is the surest way to maintain a happy household.

Don’t let squabbling over common areas spoil your relationship with your apartment roommate. Create clear, reasonable rules at the beginning of your time together, and share in the work and enjoyment of your apartment. You’ll never regret the effort to make your home a happy one.

Ways to Watch Movies in Your Apartment

Think the only way to watch movies in your apartment is to turn on the tube? Think again. While popping a DVD into your entertainment system may be the standard way to watch movies at home, technology is making it easier to get your hands on a good flick 24/7.

If you want a great apartment movie night,

take your pick of these ways to watch movies in your apartment.

Rental stores

If you only watch movies every once in a while and are mostly interested in new releases, renting DVDs from a rental store is a good way to go. Rental stores stock large amounts of the latest movies, and as long as you get to the store before the weekend rush, you’re bound to get a copy of the DVD you want.

Renting DVDs from a store does have a few drawbacks: you have to spend time driving to the rental store; you need good credit to sign up for a membership; and if you don’t get your movie back on time you will be on the hook for late fees.

Pros: No obligation to rent DVDs; get your movies right away.

Cons: Limited selection of older and more obscure movies; can be more expensive than renting online; late fees; credit check required.

Rental mailing services

For people who watch movies more than once a month, rental mailing services like Netflix or Blockbuster Total Access can be cheap and convenient.

Price is one of the biggest perks of using a rental mailing service. Most services offer unlimited rentals for a low monthly fee. Rent just a few DVDs a month, and you could save money over renting from a brick and mortar store. And as an added bonus, rental DVD mailing services don’t charge late fees.

Rental mailing services also offer convenience. Simply choose your movie from an online catalogue, and it’s delivered to your mailbox from a local mailing center in a few days. When you’re done with the flick, all you have to do is mail it back in a pre-paid envelope or, in some cases, return it to a rental movie store.

There are a few drawbacks. Whether you rent only one movie per month or 20 you will pay the same monthly subscription cost. Also, once you send a DVD back to the service, you will usually have to wait a few days for your next selection to arrive. Because of this, you do not get the instant gratification of renting from a brick and mortar store.

Pros: Good deal for people who rent many DVDs; convenient; wide selection of movies.

Cons: Must pay monthly fee whether you take advantage of service or not; have to wait for selections to come in the mail.

Streaming video and downloads

Thanks to the Internet, you don’t even have to have a TV or DVD player to watch movies in your apartment.

If you’ve got the right hardware, you can watch movies on demand on your computer (or hook your computer up to your TV). Download sites like iTunes and Amazon allow users to rent or purchase movies at a lower cost than going to a rental store. If you have a Netflix subscription, you can also watch certain films on your computer or through some brands of DVR. There are no late fees, and all you have to do is push a button to get an instant download. Some sites like Hulu even offer movies for free.

However, to take advantages of these services, you will have to have a computer and Internet connection able to handle the streaming or downloading of the movie. If your computer is older or your Internet connection is not the fastest, this will not be the best option for you.

Pros: Instant access to movies; low cost; watch some movies free of charge.

Cons: People with older computers and slower Internet service might be frustrated by slow downloads.

Kiosks

DVD rental kiosks, like redbox, are another popular way to rent the latest movies. Typically found in grocery stores or malls, these kiosks are basically like vending machines for movies. Just swipe a credit or debit card, and one dollar buys you a rental for a day. When you’re done with the disc, you just return it to the kiosk. These machines are an easy option for many people because they don’t require a credit check or a membership.

Pros: No membership or credit check required; inexpensive.

Cons: Have to drive to kiosk location; limited movie selection.

With so many ways to watch movies in your apartment, you will be able to put together a great movie night anytime!

All you need now is the popcorn.