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Safe house sharing during Covid-19

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  • It’s no secret that we’re living in unprecedented times, but as we start to see society normalise we wanted to share some insights on how you can house share safely moving forward. Below you can find some helpful tips to ensure housemates and households are on the same page, and can establish some ground rules for everyone’s peace of mind.

    Understand each other's lifestyle

    Your housemates may likely have work or study requirements along with a social life. You need to keep this in mind when agreeing to live with people. Be clear about what you’re comfortable with in terms of socialising and what you’d like them to do before re-entering your home.

    Set clear rules around having visitors

    Will you and your housemates be allowed to have visitors? Be mindful of who is visiting your home and practice safe distancing to protect your housemates as well as yourselves.

    Think ahead

    Make a plan for what happens if someone is in contact with someone found to have COVID-19, or if someone in the house contracts it. Will the whole house go into isolation? Is there an area of the house that can be used as a self-quarantine area? Keep in mind that you don't want your housemate to be concerned about how getting sick may affect their living situation. If you’d like your housemate to have a COVID-19 test prior to moving in, it's a reasonable request now that the test is readily available.

    Here are some household tips to maintain optimum health at home:

    • Wear a mask when required;
    • Sanitise your hands when entering the home;
    • Regularly disinfect surfaces around your home that are frequently touched by multiple people, such as kitchen benches, bathroom, toilet, doorknobs and fridge door;
    • Don’t hug, shake hands or touch each other;
    • Request that all members of the household have the Covid-19 app incase you or your housemate come in contact with someone who may have the virus;
    • Check in regularly with how everyone is feeling. If anyone is starting to feel unwell or are showing symptoms get tested and listen to the medical advice. 
    • If some or all of your are working from home, you'll need to make adequate concessions for each other.


    Communication is key. In order for your house sharing experience to be successful it’s important that everyone feels comfortable asking questions, and giving answers. At the end of the day, having everyone on the same page from the beginning is the best way to instil clarity and confidence in sharing your home.

    To stay up to date with the latest information on Covid-19, check with the Australian Government Department of Health