10 Handy Little Tips For Moving In With Your Partner

It's not easy finding someone you want to share your life with — but once you do, you'll find you never knew things could be so easy. Make that next step as easy as possible with these tips. No matter who you're moving in with, it's good to know you're in good hands with Allstate®.

1. Upgrade your digs. (Reasonably.)

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Now you can split the rent on a shared space that you and your partner completely control. So don't go nuts, but pick a place you could see yourselves spending years in.

2. Lay down house rules before looking for one.

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Whether it's mandating that the toilet is always flushed or that every Sunday is laundry day, discussing these rules will prevent a lot of headache in the end (and may even influence what kind of place/location you look for).

3. Divide up household chores based on (relative) interest.

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Hey, not everyone's thing is going to be dusting, but if your partner is a good cook and loves doing it, then a good compromise is for you to take on the cleanup. (It beats having ramen every night, after all.)

4. Go out... at least every once in a while.

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Just because you can spend every evening watching sappy movies on Netflix doesn't mean you should. Make sure to get down with your bad selves, too.

5. And when you do stay in, keep a boundary or two.

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Obviously your partner is super into you if you're living together, but sometimes you need to let each other have some space. You don't have to do everything together.

6. Keep money on the mind.

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Figure out a balance between rent (or the mortgage), utilities, and the fun stuff (like taking that trip to Europe you've been talking about for ages). Keep in mind that if you and your partner aren’t married and you don’t jointly own your home or apartment, the one not listed on the mortgage needs renters insurance to help make sure you’re both protected.

7. Keep (some) things unpredictable.

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Having a routine is one of the best things about living together, but so is spicing things up. Even if it's as elaborate as a surprise night out on the town or as simple as baking some cookies — those little things are really what will count (especially when you do them together).

8. Sort through all the things...

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No matter how much you love Night at the Roxbury, you definitely don't need two copies of it. Or two coffee tables, for that matter. Sort through all your stuff and pick what you need and what you don't need — and hey, you might just find there are some things that you can share.

9. ...but remember that some things ARE more important than others.

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Even if you don't understand it, your partner's large collection of taxidermy owls is important to him, so it should be important to you. Love is also about compromise, y'all. (Except maybe if it really is a large collection of taxidermy owls, that's kinda weird.)

10. Don't forget to celebrate.

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After all the packing, coordinating, moving, unpacking, and decorating, take some time to celebrate. Check out your new neighborhood. Go to the park. Go to the beach. You did it!

Whenever you decide to take that next step and move in together, contact your local Allstate Agent to help protect both you and your partner.

Watch this heartfelt animated short film featuring “Safe In My Hands” by Eli Lieb. Like the song? Get the single and exclusive remix free from Allstate.

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