DEAR Jasminda,

I HAVE two fully grown adults living at home because they are students, but they are so grotty I feel like I need to leave home so I can have a clean, organised space.

Help!

Gerry L.

Dear Gerry,

Housing affordability has meant that many of us are living in shared accommodation situations with extended family for far longer than we’d anticipated (or wanted).

In our 20s, it was fair enough to live with someone who thought the linen cupboard was a bin or who found it acceptable to put iron marks in the carpet or who created mould experiments in the fridge, but that’s not okay when you realise your flatmates are now your grown children, living rent free and often having their washing done and their meals cooked as part of a very uneven deal.

Bad habits take time to create, and good habits take time to develop.

In our home, to stop me from curling up in a foetal position and screaming, ‘If you don’t leave home, I will,’ I’ve started to ease them into the idea of personal responsibility by leaving passive aggressive post-it notes on mirrors and toilets saying ‘not self-cleaning’ and also implementing the ‘two-drawers a day’ concept.

This involves every family member cleaning out just two drawers every day, leading to a more organised household without it being too overwhelming.

If that doesn’t work try the ‘bin two drawers a day’ concept, where you randomly select two messy drawers and empty their contents or sell the items.

Your family members will soon get the message.

Carpe diem,
Jasminda.