If you’ve reached the point in your relationship where you find yourselves spending most of your time together — either at their place or yours — there’s a pretty big chance you’ve thought about living together. Taking this next step in your relationship can be a super exciting time for you both, but there are definitely some things you should know before moving in together. After all, sharing a living space is going to allow you both to get to know each other on an even deeper level.
It's often all too easy to get caught up in all of the positive things about cohabiting (like shared rent and living costs, getting to spend more time together, building the perfect love nest, etc.) and forget about all of the other, not-so-great stuff. Taking the time to closely examine the pros and cons before you make your final decision will give you both the chance to discuss possible points of conflict before they happen. If you're expecting that each one of you will be responsible for cleaning up your own mess — or if the duties are going to be shared regardless — this is something to casually talk about prior to a joint move. Once you've got all of the technical convos out of the way, here are six things to expect if you decide to live together.
Finally getting to be around the person you love 24/7 may seem like the most amazing thing ever, and in the beginning it totally is. But there are definitely going to be times when you're going to wish you could just veg out in your face mask while watching The Bachelor without have to deal with their snarky remarks.
OK, so here's the thing. We all know what goes on behind closed (bathroom) doors. And while you can try to be insanely careful, there will come a time when the Febreeze can has sprayed its last spray and your SO is right in the next room. But nature calls, and sadly, despite your hints, your partner may very well go sauntering into the bathroom right after you and directly into a cloud of funk.
You're gonna end up fighting, and probably a bit more than you might've expected. Learning how to live with someone, even someone you know and love, is a learning process. But one of the worst things about living together is getting into a fight and realizing that you can't go back to your place and give them the cold shoulder while you cool off for a bit. Nope! You can either leave, hope that they go on a walk "to clear their head," or bite the bullet and spend the rest of the night trying to avoid each other by staying on separate ends of your studio apartment in silence.
Just like living with one of your best friends, it's all fun and games until you find yourself washing heaps of their dishes for the fourth day in a row. To avoid unnecessary bickering, making a cleaning chart is really the best way to go. This way, instead of debating whose turn it is to pull out that terrifying wad of hair from the drain á la The Grudge, you can simply refer to the chart.
Nothing is going to be able to save you from feeling weird about all of the gross human stuff we like to pretend isn’t real. If you develop a toe fungus, you can bet your bottom dollar they are gonna be the first to know. But hey, it is what it is. Love overcomes all, even a truly heinous case of athlete's foot.
Once you live together, whether you want to admit it or not, you are basically living the life of a married couple. You come home to them every night and your lives become undeniably intertwined. And sometimes, you find yourself forgoing nights on the town in favor of Netflix and delivery. This means you’ll probably have to start putting more effort into planning date nights and romantic outings, because spending time working together in the living room doesn’t count!
Deciding to share a place is a huge relationship milestone, and definitely one to celebrate. But it’s always a good idea to go into any new situation having carefully weighed the positives and negatives. Once you’ve established that you can live with the less-than-perfect parts about living with your bae, then you can move forward knowing that you are definitely ready to take the next step.
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