Looking for a roommate? 6 tips to find one

According to an article in the Denver Post this morning the need for roommates has spiked for many folks who need help with expenses in this difficult economy. If you find yourself desperate for someone to help out with expenses, here are 6 tips to go about doing that.

1. Advertise on Craiglist. But don’t just put up a boring “need roommate pronto” kind of ad. You need to sell your situation! Include pictures of the home and make a pretty flyer (free of charge) at vflyer.com. Make the flyer and after you click publish, it will give you the code to plug in at Craigslist so your ad is pretty too.

2. Roommate Locator is also free of charge. There are other services for which you can pay to list an ad, but I honestly think with all the free options these probably aren’t necessary. Especially if you’re trying to cut back on expenses!

3. Make an attractive yard sign. Not a crappy yard sign mind you, I’ve seen plenty of those recently – act like you’re serious about getting a roommate and make a decent sign.

4. Add a flyer box (you can get them for around $12 at Home Depot or Lowes) and stick the printed flyers you made at vflyer.com in there. And by the way they need to be done in color!! A friend of mine was desperate for a roommate recently so I made a sign for him, loaned him a flyer box, and in less than a week his new roommate moved in, thanks to a little marketing effort.

5. If you can’t afford the house you’re currently renting consider moving out! It’s not worth the tremendous stress you’re placing on yourself just to hold on to that one particular house. The tough times won’t last forever and they’ll be over a lot more quickly if you aren’t going into debt every month just to pay the rent on a huge house.

6. Finally, when you do find someone, offer to meet them at a coffee shop the first time. (If they don’t drink coffee they probably won’t make a very good roommate anyway…) Run a credit and background check on them. Keep in mind that their credit score may not be all that great, perhaps that’s why they’re looking to rent a room anyway, they too need to cut back on expenses. (What you especially need to check is whether or not they’ve skipped out on their rent on umpteen other rental situations.)

As far as the criminal background check goes look here to access criminal records (CO only) for $6.85 and google their name as well. Ask to see their Facebook and MySpace pages. I’m not kidding! You can learn a LOT about people this way. Too much actually!

Ask them for references, specifically their prior landlord and/or roommates.

Don’t be afraid that you’re overly paranoid or might insult them. This is your HOME and your SAFETY that is at stake.

photo credit: veganstraightedge