Wanting to move into your first home, but not sure whether to move in with your friends, your partner, or a shared household? For your questions answered, you came to the right place…
Choosing to head out into the world and live with someone other than your parents is an exciting move to make. Although the ideal might be to live alone, striking out on your own can be expensive. So, choosing a shared option is probably your next step.
Whether you’re buying or renting, a cheaper and more cost-effective option could be to move in with other people. A conveyancing solicitor in the Mansfield area, Cumbria way, London locale, or wherever else you live, will be able to help you with the nitty gritty details. But first, you need to decide who, if anyone, to live with.
The question is, should you bring along your friends, your partner, or move into a shared house with strangers? The choice is yours, but we hope this article will help you to make that all-important decision.
Moving in With Friends
The pressures to get on the property ladder in this housing crisis means more and more young people are choosing to do so with their besties. Moving in with friends might seem like the obvious choice for you, especially if you want to save money but don’t have a partner. But, is it as good as it might seem?
Pros of Moving in with Friends
You Can Share Things
Sharing is caring, as they say, and the true meaning of this saying will become apparent when living with your friends. No need to spend loads of money on new clothes; simply raid your friend’s wardrobe! Forgot to buy a new frying pan when you moved in? Just use your friend’s pan!
This can come with its fallbacks, for example losing certain items to your friends, and potentially causing arguments. However, it can help you to save money overall.
Comfort Factor
Moving away from your parents, although exciting, can leave you feeling a little homesick. That said, moving in with a friend can cushion this blow; they’re someone you know, love and trust. This sense of comfort might be all you need to feel at home.
What’s more, you don’t need to be worried about running a background check or asking for references for your new housemate. This part is all done for you, through years of friendship.
Having Company and Support
Living with friends means you’ll never get lonely or bored. Whether you’re feeling down and need a shoulder to cry on, fancy a gossip or a film night, or want to let off some steam out on the town, the solution is obvious. Your friend can be your ride or die through everything, meaning you’ll never be truly alone.
Might Strengthen Your Friendship
Living with one another is sure to add an extra level to your friendship you never knew existed. Being side-by-side all the time, and sharing loves, losses, and laughter together should really help you to bond even more.
Cons of Moving in with Friends
Money Might Cause Problems
Anyone who’s lived with friends will know that finances are always a source of tension. The constant arguments about when to put the heating on, leaving lights on around the house, and who uses the washing machine most can be explosive. There’s no hiding from it either; it’s something you’ll need to face head on.
You Might Experience Feelings of Guilt
There are bound to be times when you want to spend time alone, or meet with other friends and maybe your partner. This can lead to feelings of guilt that you’re not spending time with them. Over time, this can really strain the relationship.
You Might See Their True Character
Living together is sure to open your eyes to their true nature. Although this is good, as it’s important to know who you’re really friends with, it might put an end to a once budding relationship. When true colours are made clear, this can really be make or break.
Your Friendship is Likely to Change
Spending 24/7 together might seem like a great idea until you actually put it into practice. In reality, things might not be as great as you first think, and you may start to argue and bicker a lot. It’s a real coin toss, so you should be prepared for your relationship to change massively.
Moving in With Your Partner
Next, let’s talk about some of the pros and cons of moving in with a partner. This might be the most controversial of the three scenarios, especially if you haven’t been together long. So, what could possibly go wrong?
Pros of Moving in with Your Partner
You Can Share Things
Living with a partner can be brilliant, as you can share almost everything. Whether it be pots and pans, your finances, and even your bed, you can split everything down the middle. Not only is this convenient and cheaper, it means you can really start to build a life together, as a unit.
Trust and Comfort
As we’ve already seen, moving out of your home might be daunting. But, as with friends, you know, love, and trust your partner. So, moving in together will help you to acclimatise to this new way of life through that sense of comfort they provide.
Having Company and Support
As with living with your friends, your partner will always provide you with the support you need to make you feel loved. They can act as your confidante, your friend, and your lover, all in one.
Can Start Building a Life Together
Moving in together will really show you whether you’re meant to be together. Once you’ve got past the initial stages of “will this go well or not?”, you can then start to build your life together. This is really the true test of your relationship.
Cons of Moving in with Your Partner
No Alone Time
Sharing a house with each other will mean sharing a bedroom, bathroom, kitchen and lounge. Although that’s a lot of rooms, if you ever need space away from one another, it could be tricky to achieve this. Over time, this might put a strain on you both.
Boundaries Might Start to Blur
Moving in with one another can make it difficult for you to separate your lives from one another. It’s really important to have friends and colleagues, and do activities outside of your relationship. Getting that balance right can be tricky, and may cause resentment later on, if not achieved.
Bad Habits Will Start to Show
Any bad habits your partner has been hiding away from you will be glaringly apparent when you move in together. There’s no shying away from the stray toenail clippings, unwashed dishes, or the toilet seat lid being up. You’ll have to face them upfront.
Might End Your Relationship
These bad habits might, inevitably, cause more arguments than ever before. You will really have to work on your communication to find happy mediums and routines that work for you both. Ultimately, this is the make or break test. Can you survive it?
Moving into Shared Accommodation
Your third and final option for moving to a new house is shared accommodation. This is when a group of strangers move in with one another, with one landlord to oversee everything. If one person wants to move out, the room will be filled by a new person; a constant merry-go-round of people.
Pros of Moving into Shared Accommodation
You Can Meet New People
If you’re moving to a new town or city, you might not know anyone there. Moving into a shared accommodation with strangers will help you to forge your first human connections in this new place. After this, your new home might not seem so strange anymore.
Independence
Without a friend or partner to weigh in on everything, you’ll get a true sense of self and independence. Yes, it’s good to keep socialising with your housemates to get to know them, but you won’t have that pressure to constantly be around them.
They Can Open Your Eyes to New Things
Your housemates might have hobbies you’ve never tried before that might really enthral you. Or, they could be experts on your local area, and really show you what life there is all about. Whatever it may be, you’re sure to learn something new from them.
Good for Your Mental Health
Shared accommodation gives you the best of both worlds. Not only do you have a support network and social interaction surrounding you, you can also get the much-needed privacy you might need. This makes it a safe haven for you; you can mingle when you feel like it, and take some me time when you don’t.
You Might Make Friends for Life
Although you’ll be strangers to begin with, living with one another is sure to help you to fast-track a friendship like no other. These new people might just end up becoming friends for life.
Cons of Moving into Shared Accommodation
You Might Have That Annoying Roommate to Deal With
Moving in with strangers means you never know what you’re going to get. Obviously, you have some element of control, in that you can meet them beforehand and choose if they’re a good fit. But, you never really know until you move in together.
Divvying up Chores Might be Harder
With a friend or partner, communicating who will do the chores is easier, as you know each other, and can make light of it. Dealing with this with strangers is a little more complicated; you don’t want to be the control freak early on.
Less Comfort and Trust
Ultimately, these people are total strangers which can be pretty unnerving. Especially if you’re moving from home, this is a real jump into the real world. You’re likely to feel very homesick, and perhaps even a little frightened about it all.
Who Will You Move in With?
Now that you know more about the pros and cons of moving in with friends, a partner, or a group of strangers, it’s time to make your decision. The choice is yours…
Be sure to leave your own moving house stories in the comments below! Were they successes or failures? Let us know.
