There are many benefits that come with shared living. However, many people often overlook this option for living because they are unsure of how they will handle themselves in this type of living arrangement. If you are about to start your shared living experience, this blog post will shed light on the best tips to make the best out of it.

Top Tips For Shared Living: How to Benefit from It

1 – Communicate Well

Communication is crucial to all relationships, including the ones you have with your roommates during your shared living experience. One way to communicate well is to keep the lines of communication open and to be open to listening. You never know when someone is going to approach you with a suggestion that will help you live a better life.

2 – Be Honest

If you are going to share a living space, you must be honest. This means being clear in terms of explaining your expectations and needs. If you have a low tolerance for cleanliness, it is best to let your roommates know beforehand. Although you may not get the response that you desire, your roommates will at least be aware of your needs. This way, everyone is aware of what to expect from each other.

3 – Be Accepting

Shared living can bring people from different age groups and personalities together. This can be a nice change. However, that means that you need to be more accepting of your roommates. For example, if you have a roommate who is a party animal, this does not mean that you need to be one, too. You should embrace your roommates and their personality.

4 – Be Flexible

When it comes to shared living, flexibility is key to living peacefully. You will want to put in your own stuff, but you need to be willing to get along with whatever your roommates want to do. If you have a roommate who is always late with the rent, you can be upset, but you must also be willing to work with each other to get the rent paid on time.

5 – Be Humble

Living with your roommates in a shared living space is a great way to learn more about yourself. When you are living with other people, you will have to get along with them and be humble. This means that you need to admit that you may be wrong every now and then. This is a great skill to have when you start living on your own.

6 – Keep the Space Clean

Shared living is not the same thing as living alone. You will most likely be sharing a space with roommates, so you need to keep the space clean. This means that if you spill something on the carpet, you need to clean it up, not just leave it there. As long as you are willing to clean up after yourself (and your roommates know how to keep clean as well), everyone will be happier.

Conclusion

These are just some of the top tips for shared living. If you are interested in living in shared living spaces, you should try to embrace these tips and the experience that comes with them.

If you are looking for a room for rent in Stanislaus, contact Stayhaven Homes. Our properties and services are of the highest caliber in our city and local area due to our commitment to safe, affordable all-inclusive living environments.

Whether you live in an apartment, condo, or rental house, securing your home is important. It is more crucial if you live with other family members or friends. Having a roommate can be fun, but it also requires tight security needs.

Regardless of how close you are to the people you live with, setting boundaries is still essential to ensure that you live in the space you need. Just because you live in an apartment, condo, or rental house with other people does not mean that you have to sacrifice the privacy and security that you should have.

What to Do Before Getting a Roommate

If you plan to have a roommate soon, you can try these steps first to help give you peace of mind.

Ask for a Background Check

Before accepting a roommate to your place, do your research first. Find out if your prospective roommate has a criminal history, and inquire about any unpaid bills or financial obligations that they may have.

Ask for Their References

Contacting your potential roommate’s parents, partners, friends, employers, or former landlords can give you information about the kind of person your roommate is.

Take note of your potential roommate’s interactions with them. You will be able to determine whether or not this is someone you want to be with.

Have Them Sign a Lease

If you decide to live with your friend or romantic partner, you should formalize the living arrangement.

Signing a lease is not only a good idea to protect yourself but also to protect your roommate. If you decide to break up with your roommate or get a new one, having a lease will make things easier for you.

You may also want to take photos of the apartment before getting a new roommate. It is crucial to ensure that everything is well-documented and that you have proof when needed. 

If you rent a house, you should still have a roommate agreement. It can reduce your legal liabilities.

What to Do Once You Have a Roommate

Draw the Line

No matter how close you are to your roommate, you need to set boundaries. If you feel that you need more privacy, tell your new roommate. If you have a private room or a space with doors, let them know that this is the space where you will be spending the most time. It would be best to tell them that you need to have some alone time.

Protect Your Valuables

Protecting your valuables is essential, but the problem is that people do not value what they think they cannot lose. You should have the following things ready before bringing in your new roommate.

• Home Inventory

Make a list of valuables that are in your home. It can include jewelry, electronics, furniture, and appliances. It will make it easier for you to file a claim should you lose something.

• Methods for Locking Up

Lock up your home’s important areas. That can include your room, the common areas, and the garage. Doing this will help prevent your roommate from snooping on you or your things.

Install Security Cameras

Installing a security camera will protect you from theft and other kinds of attacks. It will also give you a way to check on your roommate’s activities.

When looking for security cameras, keep in mind that you do not need to install everything in your home. You can strategically install cameras in essential places such as the living area, bedroom, and other common areas.

Conclusion

Getting a roommate can be fun and a great way to save money. But how you approach the living situation will determine how much you will enjoy your time with your roommate. Preventing theft is not only a way to avoid breaking the law, but it is also a way to protect yourself from accidents. There are many ways to protect your home and your valuables.

If you’re moving to a new city and you only have a specific budget to spare for rent, you should tap into your resourcefulness because you will need it. Finding a place to rent might be difficult, and you don’t want to risk it and accept a lease in a location that lacks amenities or demands a long daily commute. 

Long before you rent a moving truck, think about the important elements that make up your dream home, as well as the actions you’ll need to take to get it. 

Take your time and do it correctly, and you’ll have a lot better chance of producing something fantastic. Here are helpful pointers to help you get started.

Begin Your Rent Hunting as Soon as Possible

If possible, begin researching your new city’s housing alternatives at least a few months before you apply for a lease. You may be certain that you know exactly what you’re looking for this way. 

Examine general neighborhood ratings and average rental pricing, and immerse yourself in the local scene as much as possible. Living in a city is considerably different from visiting one, and you’ll want to take your time getting to know the area before deciding where to rent.

Get to Know the Neighborhood Market

Once you’ve decided on the neighborhood or communities you’d like to live in, you’ll need to familiarize yourself with their rental markets. 

How much does a month’s rent cost on average? When a unit is listed, how long does it take for it to be rented? What kind of amenities should you anticipate? Answering these questions will assist you in setting your expectations and guiding your search. 

Take a look at real estate blogs for the locations you’re interested in and skim through a lot of internet listings to get a sense of the kind of rental possibilities available and what it takes to secure one.

Get a Rental Agent If You’re Unsure of How to Proceed

A rental agency will already be familiar with your new city and will be able to provide you with options depending on your preferred location, budget, wish list, and anticipated move-in date. Rental agencies are invaluable resources, especially if you’re having trouble narrowing down your selections or are completely bewildered and unsure where to begin. 

It won’t cost you anything to employ their services because their fees are paid by the landlord or property manager, who you eventually end up leasing.

Don’t Miss an Opportunity to See the New Place

Photos can only convey so much information. While renting a wonderful home without seeing it isn’t impossible, it doesn’t hurt to go see several listings in person. If possible, schedule showings for a weekend approximately a month before your relocation, either on your own or through an agency. 

In addition to being in the location, you can spend time getting a sense of the regions you’re interested in. It’s even better if the scheduling works out, and you can sign a lease while you’re there.

Be Careful of Scams

Renting in a new place, especially from afar, requires trusting your instincts and avoiding any renting conditions that raise red flags. Do your homework on any potential landlords, and never send cash, even if they ask for it. Even if you can’t see them in person, call the landlord to get a sense of their personality. 

Back out if you find yourself second-guessing a situation. If it means avoiding the chance of being scammed, it’s worth continuing your search.

Consider Renting a Room Share Home

You will find organizations that provide all-inclusive affordable housing to a wide range of special needs clients. These room share homes are dedicated to offering tenants clean, safe, all-inclusive living situations that they will not find anywhere else.

Conclusion

Finding a rental in a new city needs a lot of research and a little luck, but you’ll eventually find a wonderful place to call home in your new location. Stay positive and focused. The proper path to your new home is out there; all you have to do is find it.

Get the best room share home experience in California at Stayhaven Homes! We provide a wide variety of special needs populations with affordable and specialized housing. Contact us today to learn more!

Owning a house in the United States has been quite challenging for many people due to the skyrocketing prices in the previous years. Fortunately, the concept of shared housing has been introduced, resulting in many people being roommates and splitting the utility bills every month, giving them lots of savings.

While the whole situation may seem straightforward, the truth is that people will always have their differences. That is why one must be compatible with the person they are going to share the house with; otherwise, there will be a definite case of conflict along the way.

The term compatibility simply refers to the fact that you may live with the other tenant in harmony. In such a case, you may take note of the following pointers that will determine how compatible you are with another person in a shared housing scenario.

1. Do You Have Similar Habits and Beliefs?

This is the first reason why you and the other tenant must have good compatibility. If you are both people who like routine and hate surprises, then you have excellent compatibility. In contrast, you may not have good compatibility if you and the other person are completely different.

2. Do You Know Each Other?

There are many reasons why you need to know each other a little before deciding on living together in a shared housing scenario. To start with, you need to keep your personal information and background private. This is also to let the other tenant know that you are a good person to live with.

3. Do You Want to Stay?

If you are planning on living with the other tenant for a long time, it is best if you are planning to stay for the long haul. This will show the other tenant that you are in the relationship for the long term. You must remember that you are planning to share your house with the other tenant for a long time, which is why you must both know each other well.

4. Do You Have a Sense of Humor?

This is something that the two of you should be mindful of. You must constantly be aware if you are looking forward to living in a place where you would need to laugh with the other tenant. If you are both people who like to joke, take note of this because it will help you both in many ways.

5. Do You Want to Live Within Your Means?

You will not want to live in a place with someone who is going to spend too much money without any sense of consideration about whether he can afford to pay the bills. This is why you must always be mindful of the other person’s financial condition.

6. Do You Have Respect for One Another?

Contrary to what many people think, it does not only refer to physical respect but also spiritual and mental respect. It is important to note that you are going to be living with the other person, so you must be mindful that you will need to respect the privacy of the other person.

Conclusion

If you really want to live within your means, then you must start living with someone else. In contrast, you must also make sure that you are going to be living with someone who can make it a fun experience. Always remember that you will have other people living in the same house as you, so you must always be mindful of the qualities you are going to look for.

Take note of our pointers above and see if you and the other tenant may have a harmonious life within shared housing.

If you are looking for available shared housing in San Joaquin, look no further than our options here at Stayhaven Homes. Since we opened our first shared home, we have provided a wide variety of special needs populations with affordable and specialized housing. Call us today for more information about our homes and their amenities.

Shared accommodation houses people from different backgrounds and ethnicities, and living close to strangers can be a challenge. Therefore, it’s important to have some general social etiquette when living with others. Here are some tips to help you become a good housemate:

1. Chip In

Each person needs to chip in for their share of the household expenses and chores. Be fair and respectful, and don’t take advantage of your housemates.

2. Respect Other People’s Boundaries

Respect each other’s privacy, personal space, and belongings. This can help avoid conflicts such as noisy neighbors or a messy roommate.

3. Communicate

Shared accommodation is the perfect environment to foster a good relationship with your housemates and form a network of people to hang out with outside of the house. Take the time to get to know one another and keep communications open.

4. Be Considerate

Your housemates are there to live with you, not for you to entertain them. Try to be respectful of one another’s time, belongings, and privacy.

5. Be Polite and Mind Your Manners

The golden rule is to treat others how you would like to be treated. Try to be polite and considerate, and treat others with respect. Try not to leave a mess and keep your room tidy as much as possible.

6. Clean Up After Yourself

You are responsible for your own mess, so keep the house clean and tidy. If you cook, wash up and make sure your kitchen is clean. If you have a dog, make sure to clean up after it.

7. Keep an Open Dialogue

Keep an open dialogue with your housemates about issues bothering you. This can include anything from a messy roommate to someone playing music too loud.

8. Be a Good Neighbor

Remember that your housemates aren’t the only ones living on the property. Try to be a good neighbor and respect the other tenants by cleaning up after yourself and keeping noise minimal.

9. Be Flexible

Shared accommodation often means living with people of a wide range of ages, lifestyles, and living habits. Be open to different ways of living and try your best to be flexible and adaptable.

10. Get to Know Your Sharing Agreement

Before signing a shared accommodation contract, make sure you understand your agreement with the landlord. This can include anything from house rules to cleaning responsibilities.

How to Find a Good Shared Accommodation

Finding a good shared accommodation can be time-consuming, but the benefits of living in one often outweigh the challenges. It’s important to do your research and follow all the necessary steps. Here’s how to find a good shared accommodation:

Get Your Budget Ready

Before looking for a place to live, you’ll want to know how much you can afford to pay in rent and bills each month. Having a firm budget in mind is important, so you can avoid overspending once you find a place to live.

Start Looking for Available Properties

Once you have your budget ready, you’re ready to start looking for shared accommodation properties in your area. Use classified ads, online ads, and local newspapers to help you find a property.

Pay a Visit and Have a Look Around

After you’ve found a property you’re interested in, make an appointment to check out the property and meet the landlord. Ask the landlord any questions you have about the property, and try to get a feel of the place before deciding if this is where you want to live.

Take the Time to Get to Know the Landlord

The landlord will have a lot of responsibilities when it comes to managing the shared accommodation, so it’s important to find a landlord who can take care of the property and be an effective landlord. Take the time to see if you’re a good match.

In a Nutshell

Shared accommodation is a great way to live in an affordable, convenient location. It’s important to be comfortable in your place, so it helps to keep a good relationship with your housemates so you won’t have to deal with any stressful situations during your stay.

Are you looking for shared housing in Stanislaus? Stayhaven Homes offers rooms and beds in shared housing. Contact us!

Moving into a shared home has a lot of benefits. You get to have a roof over your head, a community you can rely on, and a place where you can be yourself.

However, since you’ll be living with strangers, things can get awkward at the beginning. Fortunately, here are a few things that can help you live a harmonious shared house life.

Make Friends

Socializing while living in a shared house with other people is inevitable. Regardless of whether you are an extrovert or an introvert, you can expect to do some level of socializing. 

Meeting new people and making friends can make life easier. For example, you can be friends with people who have been in the house longer. They can teach you the ropes while you figure out how to make a place for yourself.

Remember, the key to socializing is to give and take. Share your stories, but pay attention to when someone else is talking. You want them to know more about you, but you also want to know more about them.

Be Nice

Being nice is not only about what you can give your roommates or housemates; it’s about being a good person. Respect everyone’s space, do your part in the house upkeep, and be mindful of what you’re doing.

Speaking to your housemates about their boundaries early on is a great idea. You will learn how to live peacefully with them, helping you bond more. Try eating with them, and broach the subject while you’re at it.

Create Your Haven

Your room is now your safe space, so go ahead and decorate it as you like. But before you make big changes to the room, like changing the wall color, check with the administration first. 

Some homes will allow you to repaint the room, but others don’t. If your house doesn’t approve of repainting your walls, you can tack on your favorite posters or make a photo wall instead.

If your room has a lot more height than floor space, use it. You can add hooks to the walls to hang your clothes or accessories. You can also go to the thrift store and dollar store to find affordable décor to make your room feel like home.

Organize

The trick to living with limited floor space is to keep it clean and organized. Make sure that everything in your room has a place. You can use thrift store or dollar store storage containers. You can also upscale product packaging into custom storage containers.

Organizing your space is one thing, but keeping it in order is a separate issue. You just have to remember one thing to stay organized: Put everything back to where they belong when you’re done with them.

Get and Give Help

Although you live with other people, you are, in essence, living independently—that can be a scary thought. At the same time, when you share a house, you are not alone. This means that you can ask for help from your housemates when you need it, and you should lend a hand when you can.

If you think that asking for help is a sign of ignorance and weakness, you’re wrong. Asking for help shows a willingness to learn and grow. When you ask, you know things faster. Sure, you can try to figure things out alone, but that would be a slow learning process. It can involve a lot of mishaps too.

Conclusion

Living in a shared house can be a wonderful experience that you will remember for the rest of your life. Try to make it a good one. Build connections, respect people, be nice, and have fun.

Stayhaven Homes offers affordable shared housing in Stanislaus, Merced, and Sacramento. We proudly provide special housing options for teens, the elderly, veterans, and more. Contact us today to learn more about how we can help you! 

Homelessness remains rampant as home prices go up. With many people losing their jobs over the unfortunate events happening globally, many are faced with limited housing options. For some, they either rent or get a mortgage, which are both expensive. 

Fortunately, there are now more affordable housing options to address this problem. And this includes shared housing.

What is Shared Housing? 

Shared housing involves unrelated tenants who agree to share housing costs and common spaces. This type of affordable housing option is an effective crisis response to address homelessness in the US. 

That said, there is a growing number of successful shared housing programs across the country.

Shared Housing Helps Extend the System’s Capacity to Move More People Out of Homelessness

Shared housing can be seen as a stepping stone to a higher standard of living. As tenants share housing costs, this allows them to save money for their own place. In the meantime, shared housing can help more people move out of homelessness and into permanent housing.

The Advantages of Shared Housing

There are many advantages of shared housing which include:

• Availability: Shared housing programs are readily available across the country. 
• Focus: Shared housing programs focus specifically on housing the homeless.
• Flexible: Shared housing programs can be flexible in nature and can adapt to the needs of the homeless, unlike traditional housing programs.
• Innovation: Shared housing programs can be innovative in terms of addressing the needs of the growing homeless population. 

Shared Housing in Micro-Communities

Micro-communities are now a part of the shared housing model. It provides tenants with an option to live in a more communal and friendly environment. The concept of micro-communities is to provide housing units that are smaller but more in number. Each unit can be more affordable, and tenants can also be closer to each other, making it easier for them to socialize.

Micro-communities can be a cheaper option for housing than larger developments. This is because micro-communities can be built in smaller areas, thus reducing the need for more infrastructure to be built.

Micro-communities have proven to be a success in Hawaii, where they’re called lanai houses. They’re also popular in the Western European housing market.

Shared Housing Must Reflect the Needs of the Homeless

Shared housing must be flexible enough to respond to the needs of the homeless. This can include the types of homes, community services, and support programs. In addition to that, the shared housing should work in partnership with non-profit organizations and local government entities.

The Future of Shared Housing

Shared housing is changing the way social services approach homelessness. It’s a successful model and can be a stepping stone to moving people out of homelessness back into permanent housing.

Wrap Up

Shared housing has been a successful model for getting people out of homelessness and helping them move into permanent housing. It’s a partnership among the government, corporations, and nonprofits to offer affordable housing options to the homeless. In the long run, shared housing will help reduce the homeless population across the country.

Are you looking for shared housing in Stanislaus County, CA? Stayhaven Homes provides affordable and specialized housing. Our properties and services are of the highest caliber in the city. We are committed to safe, affordable, all-inclusive living environments. Get in touch with us.