The pros and cons of getting a roommate

Are you sitting alone in your mansion watching yourself slowly being crushed by the mortgage, utility bills or grown kids treating you as a breathing ATM? Or you came back from rehab no longer a hoarder but with an expensive apartment suddenly way too big for your needs? What I’m getting at is that many people need extra cash AND they have space to spare. You don’t have to be a genius to figure out the solution: rent out whatever extra rooms you have, make some cash and become a landlord!

Now, this of course opens up another can of worms. You need to find stable, sane and decent renters. A roommate trampling your precious garden is still a bad roommate even if they pay their rent on time. Not to worry though, I’m here to put your mind at ease and lay out the facts.

• Fact number one: students are always looking for rooms, for them a tent is luxurious. Students are also generally well behaved and have some form of income. If you’re starting to feel old, a student will teach you about the latest trends and you’ll become a sensation at the next family reunion. Still, you will need to find the right student for you and that’s where Hemavi comes to the rescue. Hemavi has a huge database of the most well behaved, financially stable students looking for rooms. Even if you’re looking for a broke hippie to relive the golden years with, Hemavi is there for you.
• Fact number two: roommates are underrated. When you think of roommates you might think about wild parties and bad behavior. That's an offensive Hollywood stereotype! Nowadays, with a little help from Hemavi, you actually get to choose the behavior of your tenant. Maybe you have a big house where the extra room has a separate entrance and you consider yourself “down with the kids”? In that case, the occasional wild party won’t bother you as much and in return you’ll have a larger pool of tenants to choose from. On the other hand, if your apartment is small and your tinnitus is getting worse every year, consider an older tenant or a student with a bad case of social anxiety.
• Fact number three: you set the terms! Renting out a room to a stranger can be a scary idea. Hemavi is there for you all the way but at the end of the day it’s still a big step. That’s why it’s good to remind yourself who’s the boss. If you just wanna dip your toe, start out short term. Maybe offer up your room for a couple of months. Then if things don’t work out, kindly tell the tenant to leave the premises! On the other hand, if you consider renting out a spare room the start of your property empire, this is a great way to see if that career is actually viable.

I hope these words have soothed your worried mind. Hemavi is standing by to list your room and find the perfect tenant. Visit us on Facebook and Instagram and keep reading this blog for more roommate related tips and advice.