One roommate in a communal house or flat can put an entire household at risk
, a text message appeared on Twitter from a student at Brigham Young University in Salt Lake City. She asked her flatmate not to invite guests to their shared space during the coronavirus epidemic, since her immune system was compromised. “I’m glad that you are seeking to stay safe,” came the reply, “however, you can’t prevent me from having people over. So you can expect to see Brett over often, and if that’s an issue for you, you can stay in your room.
Over the past 15 years, household sharing—think of the sitcom “Friends”—has soared with the rising cost of housing and rent. According to Pew, 30% of those under 35 are house-sharers, compared with 12% of people aged 35 to 54. They are concentrated in the largest cities. Zillow, a property-database company, estimated in 2018 that 40-50% of adults in southern California’s large cities as well as New York lived in shared households, compared with less than 20% in North Dakota and Iowa.
So house-sharers have suddenly been forced to start thinking about questions like: are visitors allowed? Partners? What happens if someone gets the virus? Others rely on explicit rules. Everyone who enters the house must change clothes and shower, says Brad Marriner. He shares an apartment in New York with another man; both have partners in other two-person apartments, making a circle of six people in three houses, all of whom have signed up to common rules. “There’s a lot of laundry and showering,” he says.
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