Houseshare Housework Hacks
One of the most contentious subjects in any house share is the dreaded ‘housework’. There’s no question that since we have been providing house shares, we have encountered a lot of different types of housemates, and sometimes, that can make housework an even more challenging conversation to have. We are all spending far more time at home now than ever before, so giving your communal space the attention it needs as a group is worth the effort and makes your living environment a much happier place to spend time.
One of the simplest and most effective ways to achieve this is to assemble a rota. However, this can be a political hot potato in a house, particularly when housemates have varying routines.
At Rooms in Kent, we want you to have the best house share experience possible, so to help out, we have put together some tips from our tenants to draw up a perfect housework rota. So, start a WhatsApp group or call a house meeting and work together to have a clean and tidy home.
“So I actually have to empty the dishwasher?”
The first thing to consider between you and the rest of your house is what items you want to be covered in your rota. Traditionally this would be things like putting the bins out and emptying the dishwasher. In addition, there might be other things like who will buy the washing up liquid and who’s responsible for topping up the salt in the dishwasher. So, work out whether you should all muck in for each item or assign each person a task to deal with on the rota.
“How often do I really need to do the washing up?”
The next aspect to overcome before committing to your rota is deciding how often each item gets carried out. This might be because of how often each item is used by the house or the availability of each housemate. If part of your rota is to wash up, perhaps it will be a daily thing instead of a weekly one.
A simple approach is to either find a day in which you are all free (A Saturday or Sunday is usually most common) or, if this doesn’t work, a separate day for each housemate.
“But the bin is gross!”
As mentioned above, some tasks in certain parts of the communal space may need more attention than others, the obvious being washing dishes. Equally, particularly grubby things like taking out the bins, which might occur a couple of times a week, should be scheduled on rotation, as jobs like this can quickly frustrate people if left to one person regularly, and nobody likes an argument!
“I’m working nights this week.”
Before you fully commit, it is worth considering each other’s work commitments and lifestyle routines. Committing to a Sunday cleaning day will be tricky if half of your housemates work weekends. If this is the case, perhaps assign individual tasks within certain rooms to break it up and make the whole rota digestible. This way, each of you can do housework when it best fits you without upsetting anyone else.
“Teamwork makes the dream work.”
Let’s face it: some of us are happy to clean as and when it’s needed, while others only find the time when it suits us. A rota’s whole point is finding the most efficient way to carry out chores whilst making it the best for everyone. If your rota is making it difficult for some, you’re probably going to end up doing more harm than good, so communication is key!
Start a WhatsApp group or hold regular house meetings; these should be spaces where you can have relaxed and open conversations about what is working and what is not to find the best solution for you as a house.
Click Here to download our Houseshare Housework Rota with House Kitty Fund Manager!
