Should I or shouldn’t I have a roommate in USF apartments?

While living in University of South Florida apartments, you may be faced with the decision to either live alone or live with a roommate. If you are not set on any one choice, then looking over some of the pros and cons of each situation may be helpful before coming to your final decision.

Apartments near USF are often catered towards students. Bottom line, a roommate will help you save money on things like rent and utilities. With two, three or more individuals splitting the price of all of the living expenses, you can imagine that your monthly contribution will be much less than if you were paying for everything on your own. The more roommates you have, the less money you will pay each month. Even if you're new to Tampa and do not have a particular roommate in mind, many communities offer roommate matching services.

One problem that roommates may pose is that even though you think you're going to be spending less on living expenses each month, nothing will change if your roommate fails to pay their portion. Your roommate or roommates are bound to be human, just like you! They may make a mistake and miss a payment. This may force you to cough up some extra cash just to front them and make your rent payment in time. Or if it gets bad enough, you could potentially face eviction and a derogatory mark on your rental record. It is wonderful to trust and know the person you are moving in with, but even the closest of friends can miss a rent payment. One way to ensure that you as an individual renter is protected is to look into individual leases. One perk of these individual leases is that many are all-inclusive of the rent and utilities. This way, you are responsible for only your portion and if your roommate skips out on three months of rent, they will be dealt with, not you.

Keeping USF apartments clean can be a breeze with roommates! Just think of having an extra set - or more – of hands when it comes to cleaning day. You can split up the chores so you know exactly what you have to do when you get home from school or work. If you hate doing the dishes and your roommate hates vacuuming, then it's a natural fit for you to divide up the work! If you don't mind dealing with the washer and dryer while your roommate cleans the bathrooms, go for it!

Not all apartments near USF will include a roommate that is good at cleaning, however. If your roomie happens to be a slob, or even welcomes any amount of clutter, this can cause a lot of friction and arguments in your household. It is best to find out the cleanliness levels of each roommate before agreeing to move in together. Some people's clean may be another person's filthy. This is something that needs to be communicated before signing a lease.

Roommates in USF apartments can be a great way to make instant friends! If you're new to the area and don't know anyone, having a confidant at home is a great way for you to start to socialize. You may even meet some new friends through your roomie! This is the easiest way to meet someone new – being forced to share the same roof!

Of course, there's also a downside to moving in with someone you don't know – you may not like them. That's ok, we don't have to like everyone we meet. However, if your personalities clash and it becomes a problem, then living with a roommate may not seem like it was the best choice at the time. The lack of privacy is also an issue for many people. Please be sure to really think about your decision before moving in with someone. A year is a long time to deal with someone you can't stand, so just keep that in mind!

These are the opinions of writers and not the opinions of ApartmentsForBulls.com or any of our advertising partners.