Moving in together is the new marriage. At least that’s what some relationship guides claim. After all, the common doorbell is now proof that you mean business with your partner, just as it was just a ring on your finger a few years ago.
Unfortunately, there is no timetable for how things are guaranteed to go well here either. However, there are a number of things you can do in advance to ensure that life in the first shared apartment is nice.
If communication is the be-all and end-all in a partnership, communicating about joint expenses for rent, food and insurance is the be-all and end-all and all other letters of the alphabet. Of course, money isn’t everything, but only as long as you talk about how you want to regulate the costs incurred.
Shared account
If there really is a tip that has certainly saved one or the other partnership from recurring disputes, it is: create a joint account.
Agree on an amount that each of you will deposit into this account each month. It does not necessarily have to be the same amount, but should be based on the percentage of your own monthly income and the common costs to be covered. A plan could look like this:
- They clarify which monthly costs have to be managed.
- You set a minimum monthly amount to cover all costs.
- You look at how to fairly split this minimum amount.
Rental deposit and insurance
One of the advantages of living together is that many costs can be shared. Two household contents insurance policies and two liability insurance policies can confidently become one. Just make sure that you update your information to the insurance company and state the new insured persons as well as the new square footage.
You can also share the rental deposit for the shared apartment. Or you save this money and prefer to invest in the common nest. Because instead of paying the full amount in cash for a rent deposit, you have the option of keeping the money and trying a rent deposit guarantee instead.
The topic of everyday life: who takes on which tasks in the shared apartment?
Divide housework fairly
Rather dry than do the dishes? If you’re lucky, it’s the other way around with your partner and you can complement each other perfectly here too. The most likely case, however, is that this simple division will not apply to all the tasks that arise.
The best plan is here: the budget. Keep it like you were when you were in a flat share and create a joint weekly plan with the housework that needs to be done and simply take turns. So nobody feels disadvantaged and everyone has the same amount of work to do.
create a budget
But some things require more than just time, they want to be paid for. Agree together on what budget you want to set for weekly shopping, repairs, etc. This works particularly well if you keep a household book in which you note your recurring expenses. After a few weeks, but at the latest after 2 months, a reliable mean value can be recorded, which should be quite resilient.
On the subject of home furnishings: what furniture do you both feel comfortable with?
It should be beautiful, a real home to feel good in. Sometimes, however, opinions differ as to what constitutes a real dream home. Do you really have to take grandma’s old chair with you? And could the living room not be planned around the Playstation?
find compromises
If you want to tell the other person that something is not allowed, you should in return offer to forego a piece of furniture or a specific request. In this way, the consultation and agreement is much easier, because nobody feels disadvantaged.
What also helps is to create a priority list on which the pieces of furniture are listed according to their importance for one or the other. The massive wooden table from the posh furniture store? Absolute priority for him. The garden bench, on the other hand, is only at priority 3, the grill at 2.
If items are duplicated, talk about quality and emotional value. Which sofa has its best years behind it and which one can you cuddle up on in front of the TV for a long time?
Once you have determined which items of furniture are not necessary in the new apartment, the pain of separation from the well-known does not have to last too long. Sell the leftover sofa, second set of kitchen chairs, and the smaller of the two wardrobes on a classifieds site and use the proceeds to buy some awesome new furniture that you both love.
Own room (corner)
Tip: As wonderful as it is to enjoy being together around the clock, in the long run this can lead to a crisis and even endanger the relationship.
And no, your decision to move in together or the new apartment together are not to blame, you can exhale, the child didn’t fall into the well. It’s the fact that neither of you have created an individual retreat in it. Make sure you work for it, after all the situation is new for you and your partner and nobody should have to sacrifice their me-time. A room or a corner in the rented apartment in which you are not “the better half”, but in which you can pursue your own interests as a whole and without restrictions, helps immensely.
Furthermore Information about Rental Deposits In the Netherlands, Please visit https://www.skipdeposit.nl.
