Now that you’ve had some time to settle in with your new roommate, you’ve probably learned that everyone has some interesting quirks.

If this is your first semester with your particular roommate(s), you’ve had to learn to interact in close quarters with an entirely new person. 

While it’s always fun to have someone to come home to, sharing space can often be difficult.

A couple of my friends have come to me complaining of difficulties with their roommates overstepping boundaries — whether it be using their stuff, hogging all the space, or inviting people over without checking first. 

If you’re wondering whether or not you’re being too picky, read on and find out how to set boundaries with your roommate and how to handle it when your roommate steps out of bounds.

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Sharing Dishes/Food

Dishes and food are kind of tricky subjects. Many people don’t care about sharing their stuff, but it’s also disrespectful to just start taking things without asking. 

If you have a roommate that is using your dishes without asking and you do mind, one thing you can try is offering to take your roommate to get a second set, or explaining where you got them. This might clue them into the fact that you want them to have their own dishes. 

If you don’t mind sharing, make sure you indicate that you would prefer they wash and put the dish back where it belongs so you aren’t stuck doing chores all night. If you feel comfortable, you can say something along the lines of “those dishes were only $X so I don’t mind sharing. Maybe we could split the cost?” That way, you save money as well!

For food, it doesn’t usually make sense to have two milks, two eggs, or many of anything large and generic. (Although I know people who have bought separate containers and labeled them with each roommate’s initials.)