How to be roommates, and still be friends!

Most of you know that I spent three years in Thailand. Of those three years, I spent a little over a year in a small one room (plus an outside bathroom) apartment (looked more like a dorm room) with my awesome roommate, Martina. She and I are from different countries, America and Italy, but I believe I had one of the greatest roommate experiences. I had heard so many horror stories about people's roommates, especially if they had started off as friends. God really blessed me with the roommate I had, who was really laid back, and helped my experience be a great one.  I am, of course, a youth pastor's wife, which means we minister to teenagers, and ones who are about to go off to college. We have a couple who are wanting to room with each other and one other friend (they are all best friends), so as promised to them, I am writing a post on how to be roommates and still be friends!

If you have read my other blog posts you know I've talked a lot about relationships, and this is basically another type of relationship. To begin, the most important thing is:

Communication

Talk it out! And this needs to start before you become roommates. If you ask the questions later, then you are asking for more drama, and possible loss of friendships. Here are some sample questions to ask:
Money:
Who is in charge to collect the money to pay for rent/utilities? Will each buy their own groceries? If you are carpooling will the gas be split?
Social:
Do you want some guidelines as far as boys being in the house? If one has a boyfriend, what is appropriate for them to do in front of everyone? (if you are all strong Christians, this may be much easier to talk about. If you are dating, it's my suggestion that if you invite them in, it should to the living room area with your roommates there. Bedrooms should never be a place for boys! (and guys, your bedroom should never be a place for girls!) )
Cleanliness:
Who is in Charge of cleaning which rooms? How often should it be done, and how thorough? If you are sharing a bedroom, does it matter if one cleans their side of the room and the other one doesn't?
Time:
Are your friends night owls, and you're an early bird, how late or how early can you be making loud noises? Remember Proverbs 27:14 'Whoever blesses his neighbor with a loud voice, rising early in the morning, will be counted as cursing.' This can also be applied to late at night as well.
Are you carpooling to class? How late is too late? Do you know your friend likes to take their time in the morning and is often late for school, but you've never had to deal with it before...well, you may want to talk about it now, so you don't have to argue about it later.

Arguements

As good as the communication was before you got together, there still may be arguments later. We are all human, after all, and we each come with our own unique personality, our own strengths and weaknesses. Remember that as Christians, we should treat our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, with love, and put each others needs above our own (Ephesians 4:32“Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” ). Sometimes, however, you may feel like something needs to be addressed. When this happens you should go directly to the person you are having trouble with and not to anyone else, then tell them in love what is bothering you.

Fish and company stink after three days

You absolutely love hanging out with your best friend, and feel like that being roommates is like having a sleepover party every night. Not saying there won't be days like that, but it is good to remember, that anybody can get tired of anybody.  My roommate and I were in two separate majors, with different class times, and I was involved in the local church there, and also taught English. She had her own activities that she was involved in, and it meant that we might only 'hang out' together a couple of times a week. I am very thankful this happened, because we remained very close friends throughout the year. Try to make it where you have your own life and friends outside of your roommates, and set aside maybe once a week where you have some sort of 'hang out' whether it be a pizza and movie night, a Saturday at the mall, or just some girlie talk time (guys, you may substitute that with video games if you like).

These are my tips for having a good roommate experience. Do you have any more that I missed? Be sure and comment below!