Posts under ‘Interviewing’

Here is a References Worksheet. Use it as a guide when you call references for your (possible) future housemate.
Also here is longer discussion on how to check references.

Guidelines for how to check references for possible housemates. Include downloadable form.

As I interview people for the book I’m writing, I’m hearing stories about the nightmare housing situations.
What is a nightmare situation? It’s when the comfortable feeling between housemates breaks down because of conflict that is unresolved, and communication stops. It is really awful. Home becomes a battleground. If you have lived a nightmare situation, it’s [...]

Moving long distance presents a challenge.  How do you find a place to live when you aren’t there to see the place and to interview potential housemates? Some people make the trip for a weekend ahead of time and try to jam it all in and maybe they get lucky.  I’m sure some do get [...]

I’ve just read an article on Helium about nightmare housemates. It’s enough to make one think that sharing housing is a bad idea.  It isn’t. There are plenty of wonderful people out there who are great housemates.
What makes a housemate a nightmare? Self-centeredness. Plain and simple. The nightmare housemate breaks agreements and/or refuses to modify [...]

Your goal in the initial phone call is to determine if there is enough of a match to spend time showing and looking at the space.
You should have a clear idea of what you MUST have in a housemate and living situation. What you must have is very different from what you would like to [...]