The competition for great apartment shares can be intense. After all, when you’re trying to “win” at the roommate competition, you want people to like you.
So it’s not surprising that people opt to tell a little white lie – or two – to help secure a dream apartment share.
We asked SpareRoom users how they may have “misled” their roommates to score the room they want. Not surprisingly, the most common fibs were about house clutter:
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36% of roommates admit to lying about being neat and tidy
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21% have said they’re easy going about clutter when really they aren’t
The good news is prospective roommates are far less likely to lie about house etiquette. In fact, only one in 10 admit to having lied about:
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Taking long showers on busy weekday mornings
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Finishing the milk (without replacing it)
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Being loud and inconsiderate when getting in late after a night of bar-hopping
While annoying, these habits are a lot less concerning than lies about financial habits. Worryingly, 9% lie about paying their bills on time, which could be grounds for serious problems in the apartment-sharing world.
The best approach when you are looking for new roommates is to be yourself – you’ll have more luck landing a comfortable, long-term situation if you’re open and honest about your lifestyle. Besides, remembering lies is hard, and living up to them even harder.
Have you ever told a tall tale to secure an apartment share or encourage a potential roommate to move in with you? Was it worth it, or did you end up trying to be someone you’re not?