Don't be home between 9 and 5 and don't laugh after 11pm: Man sparks debate with his VERY strict flatmate rules - but is everything as it seems?
- A man has decided to be brutally honest by listing his very strict 'flatmate rules'
- He took to social media to place a room for rent at his New Zealand property
- Man posted very sternly worded criteria to warn off any unsuitable applicants
A man has decided to be brutally honest in his housemate wanted ad by listing his very strict rules to avoid any surprises when moving day comes around.
Pete took to social media to place a room for rent at $300 week at his four bedroom property in Auckland, New Zealand.
Taking household requirements to the extreme, the man posted very sternly worded criteria to warn off any unsuitable applicants - but is everything as it seems?
The list includes not being allowed in the apartment between 9am to 5pm on weekdays, no laughing after 11pm, must restrict bowel movements, and boyfriend or girlfriend must pay rent if they're sleeping over more than four times a week.
A man has decided to be brutally honest in his housemate wanted ad by listing his very strict 'flatmate rules' to avoid any surprises when moving day comes around (stock image)
Timing
Pete said he works from home five days a week so he needs the place all to himself between 9am to 5pm from Monday to Friday.
'If you have a proper job, this shouldn't be a problem. Students who go to university on random days for a few hours or stay at home all day long and chill out unfortunately can't live here,' he said.
'I'm not fussy about the weekends, I just want to know you have somewhere to be Monday to Friday from the morning till late afternoon.'
Noise levels
He said the new housemate must be 'quiet' at all times and a 'considerate' person.
'I'm not looking for a "bull in a china shop" kind of flatmate, I don't want you to be always running around, throwing things around. And I expect your guests to act respectably when here. Both me and the other flatmate are quiet and rather gentle people.'
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Phone calls
'I used to have this flatmate who was on Skype for two to three hours every day - and five hours on weekends. I won't have that,' Pete said.
'It doesn't matter if you talk on Skype or the phone "quietly", or so you think. I won't tell you for how long you're allowed to talk a day, it's nonsense, if you need to call someone just do it.'
Laughter
Pete said the new housemate is not allowed to 'laugh out loud' after 11pm or sleep with the radio on.
'Basically, I'd like you to use common sense. You're living with other people, who want to be able to rest and to sleep, and do whatever else they need to do after a long, noisy day,' he said.
Pete said you are not allowed to cook before 8.30am and after 11pm (picture of the kitchen)
Socialising with other flatmates
Pete said his place isn't a 'very sociable house' so don't expect parties, cooking or watching TV together as flatmates.
'Mainly because people always have different schedules and they're busy,' he said.
'But I expect my flatmates to be friendly towards each other, which means that sneaking around behind each other's backs is not fine.
'This is a home, not a hotel, there are no strangers here.'
How you spend your time
'If you spend all your free time hanging around the house, streaming TV show and talking on the phone for hours, we're not gonna like each other,' he said.
'When I'm not working in my part-time job, my life revolves around my laptop when I work at home because I'm a very busy person. But I don't want my new flatmate to assume that just because I spend so much time here, it's OK for them to do the same.'
'Bowel movements'
Pete said if you have to run to the toilet 15 times a day or every 15 minutes, you should not bother moving into his place.
'If you say you don't spend much time in the bathroom because you don't take long showers but then you sit on the toilet several times a day, and only your morning bathroom runs take almost one hour in total, this definitely isn't a place for you,' he said.
Pete took to social media to place a room (pictured) for rent at $300 week at his four bedroom property in Auckland, New Zealand
Cooking
He said you are not allowed to cook in the flat before 8.30am and after 11pm.
'Occasionally I will allow it, and you can also make some porridge or use the microwave. But anything that requires pots and pans and a lot of washing-up afterwards is not allowed,' he said.
'I don't like people spending a lot of time cooking in general. If you only eat cooked or fried meals because you don't know how to make a sandwich, and you hang around the kitchen for hours a day or spend every weekend preparing elaborate meals and baking, this isn't a place for you.
'If all you eat is canned beans and cooked lentils and drink beer, you're not my kind of flatmate. I need someone a little more sophisticated here.'
Cleaning
'I don't want to point out that the toilet needs to be flushed every time, the bathtub needs to be rinsed of hair, and the dirty dishes need to be washed sooner rather than later. I won't tolerate dishes lying in the sink for two days.'
Pete said his place isn't a 'very sociable house' so don't expect parties, cooking together
Pete said under no circumstances are you allowed to be 'under the influence' of alcohol or drugs at his property
Guests
Pete said he doesn't want to see guests hanging around the flat more than two times a week.
'Sometimes you may have a guest coming over for the weekend or a few days – that's fine as long as it's not every month, although it also depends on what kind of flatmate you are and who your friends are. But there are gazillions of places where you can socialise, and the flat is for the flatmates,' he said.
Pete said boyfriends and girlfriends are ok but if they are sleeping in the flat up to four times a week, they are required to pay rent.
'We'd have a fifth person living with us, and in that case they should be paying the rent like everyone else. If you must see your partner that often, you should live with them, not with us,' he said.
Booze
Pete said under no circumstances are you allowed to be 'under the influence' of alcohol or drugs at his home.
'Beer and wine in reasonable amounts are obviously fine, we're all adults here, but apart from that I don't want any crazy stuff here,' he said.
About me
'I'm quite easy-going,' Pete said, hinting the ad may have been a joke.
'And if you got this far, you clearly have a sense of humour and we want you. Rent $300, move in costs bond and rent in advance is three weeks rent.'
After posting the ad on Facebook, many were shocked by his list of demands, with some saying they weren't convinced he was trying to be funny - but Pete defended himself, saying he wanted to be creative with his 'rules'.
'Nothing more than a good old flatmates wanted advert... Who reads the boring ones anyway. We would love to show you we aren't crazy just enjoy a bit of fun in our flatmate wanted adverts,' Pete said.
