Veteran renters offer tips on house-sharing

30 2007
With growing numbers of Britons now sharing rented accommodation well beyond their student years, a new book has been launched chronicling the life and times of flatshares.

According to a BBC report, "a nervy housing market, more single people and increased immigration are factors contributing to the strongest demand for tenants in years".

Sharing a rented flat or house not only has economic benefits but can also have significant social advantages, allowing people to meet new friends and even possible partners and also network professionally.

However, in her book I Lick My Cheese, Oonagh O'Hagan advises prospective flatmates to set down some ground rules before moving in together, such as establishing how all the bills are to be paid and a policy on sharing food and using communal living areas.

"Have that difficult conversation at the beginning, before the deal is done, when it's much easier to say things like 'This is my TV, you have your TV in your bedroom," added Amy Jenkins, the creator of This Life, the late 90s show portraying the lives of a group of young lawyers all living together.

Some of the famous flatmates cited by the BBC report included Robbie Williams and Jonathan Wilkes, Ant and Dec and David Baddiel and Frank Skinner.
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