Covid-19 vaccination status beginning to divide share houses, Flatmates research reveals

Covid-19 has created a new dynamic for Aussies in share houses to navigate, with vaccination status now a deal-breaker for those picking house mates, new research by Flatmates.com.au reveals.

Covid-19 has created a new dynamic for Aussies in share houses to navigate, with vaccination status now a deal-breaker for those picking house mates, new research by Flatmates.com.au reveals.

A study of more than 9000 respondents in the National Share Accommodation Survey unveils the pros and cons of cohabitation throughout the second year of the pandemic. From financial pressures to friendship ups and downs, 2021 lockdowns have led many flatmates to re-evaluate their living arrangements.

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Nurse Amelia Berwick, who shares a house in Melbourne’s Brunswick, said the pandemic had introduced a new way of living under the same roof for her and her two friends.

“We had a big group of staff furloughed recently because of a positive nurse in our department. While we were allowed to go to work, we had to isolate at home and that’s not at all easy to do in any share house. Luckily, we all have a great relationship with each other,” she said, adding that lockdowns had forever changed share house living.

Share house living has changed forever. Picture: Getty

“I know now that having fully vaccinated housemates is very important to me. Also, I think we’ve all come to realise what it means to be kind to one another. Everyone’s got different things going on at work or at home, and you don’t always know what someone else’s day looks like,” Ms Berwick said.

Long periods stuck at home had 43 per cent of flatmates seriously reassessing their living situation this year, with most coveting more space, according to the Flatmates survey.

Untidiness was also a pain point for flatmates with 37 per cent naming messiness as the most annoying thing about share living, putting neatness at the top of the list when seeking a roommate, closely followed by a new request.

“More renters on the lookout for a new roomie on Flatmates.com.au are indicating their preference for vaccinated tenants or proactively sharing their own status.

Covid-19 lockdowns also put pressure on some flatmate friendships. Picture: Getty

While messy housemates have long been a deal breaker, it’s likely we’ll start to see vaccination status becoming increasingly important,” said Claudia Conley, community manager at Flatmates.com.au.

When it comes to money, 30 per cent of flatmates said they were in a worse financial situation now than pre-pandemic. However, the report showed that flatmates got creative with their finances to make ends meet. A quarter advertised a spare room for rent, 13 per cent asked their landlord for a rent reduction and one in five moved in with family.

Covid-19 lockdowns confining people into close quarters under one roof also put pressure on flatmate friendships.

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Half of the respondents said their co-tenant relationship was unchanged and a further 10 per cent said they were closer than before lockdown. While 22 per cent said friendships were the best thing about living in a share house, 50 per cent said they’d rather live with a stranger. And it wasn’t smooth sailing for romantic relationships.

Of the 16 per cent of flatmates who moved in with their partner during the pandemic, more than half have since broken up.

“Working from home, working out from home, entertaining – everything has impacted our community during lockdowns. We had 34 per cent move out of their share house and into a different kind of home during the pandemic, with 23 per cent of these saying it was because they were sick of their flatmates and another 20 per cent moved because they needed their own space,” Ms Conley said.

Many renters are now looking for houses with more space.

She added that one of the big shifts brought to share house living during the pandemic was a desire for quality bricks and mortar.

“In the past, people might have put up with a share house that was falling apart or small, because it didn’t really matter to them as long as they were in St Kilda or Bondi. But now for so many people having a quality home with a good outdoor space is really important,” she explained, adding that 16 per cent of respondents moved for more outdoor space, 12 per cent relocated to a bigger property all together and 20 per cent moved closer to the beach.

With inner city asking rents still below pre-lockdown levels, Ms Conley said tenants currently looking for share house opportunities are in the driver’s seat.

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“As lockdown restrictions ease, now is a great time to look for an upgrade. We still don’t have backpackers or international students to compete with and rents have been reduced. That could all change in the new year. It’s just about knowing where to look, what to look for and who to move in with.”

Inner city rental prices are still below pre-lockdown levels.

As a graduate nurse, 2021 has been the first year Ms Berwick worked full-time in a hospital and much of it has been spent in the emergency department under Covid restrictions. She said her job naturally caused concern for her flatmates.

“I think even after all this time I still have a certain level of guilt about bringing the virus home, or even taking it to work. I’m just used to taking all the necessary precautions now, like disinfecting my shoes at the door, getting naked at the bottom of the stairs, throwing my clothes in the laundry and showering immediately – it’s pretty strange I guess”

“One hasn’t been able to work during the pandemic and was home a lot more. My job was a worry for him, so we were all pretty cautious and really kept track of who we were seeing and where we’d been. It was just such a change because before lockdown, when we were both working, we wouldn’t even see each other for days at a time,” she said.

“My job means walking through life and death, then coming home and just acting as if that hadn’t happened.

“What I’ve learned from share house living during a lockdown is to treat everyone with the respect and really consider everyone’s mental health.”