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One home, two couples as flatmates

When two people fall in love and spend a lot of time with each other, moving in together is often a natural next step. But what if, instead of one couple, two couples move into a shared home? Isla and Jeme, as well as Suvi and Niklas, all moved into a shared SATO rental home in Kannelmäki. This living arrangement has worked out very well for them.

The year 2022 was a good one for flatmates Jeme Kuusniemi and Suvi Kinnunen. Both met someone interesting on a dating app at the same time and fell in love. The friends even made their relationships official on the same day.

“But it wasn’t planned!” Suvi and Jeme laugh in the light-filled living room of their beautiful home. The room is full of lush green houseplants, with tomatoes and basil thriving on the balcony. Sitting on the sofa next to the friends are Jeme's partner Isla Usvakangas and Suvi's partner Niklas Jännetyinen – those interesting people from the dating app.

The couples have now been together for 11 months, and for seven of those, they have all lived under the same roof.

“What if we all just moved in together?”

“We all clicked really well from the get-go”, Suvi says.

“We spent so much time together that both couples practically lived in Jeme and Suvi’s one-bedroom apartment for the first three months of our relationships”, Isla continues. “When my housing situation changed and we had to figure something out, the question arose: what if we all just moved in together?”

Four friends are sitting on a sofa, laughing together. On the left, Jeme is wearing a patterned shirt and a white cap. To the right is a Isla with curly hair in a white tank top. Next is Suvi with short orange hair and yellow pants smiling, and on the right, Niklas in a light-colored shirt and jeans is also smiling. A bookshelf with board games and plants is in the background. The scene is warm and joyful.

The certainty of moving in together came from the fact that the group, who spent a lot of time together, knew each other well and knew that everyone had good emotional skills.

“We knew we would be able to talk things through. Even if problems arose, we would be able to resolve them”, Isla describes.

“In the end, the decision to move in together was pretty easy for both couples. Thanks to this living arrangement, we get a lot of extra time in our daily lives to maintain our relationships and spend time with our partners.”

“Living together also helps you grow a lot as a person,” Jeme thinks. “You learn a lot about other people and about yourself. This is a truly unique experience.”

Room to be together and apart

Jeme, Isla, Suvi, and Niklas's 88-square-meter rental home has three bedrooms and a balcony. Even though the number of rooms is not equal, dividing the space went smoothly.

“We just considered everyone’s needs and what would be most sensible. In the end, the division was quite natural”, Isla says.

A cozy room with a loft bed and colorful string lights. Below the bed, there's a small sitting area with assorted cushions and a green floral blanket. A yellow armchair is in front, and a desk with a mirror and a green plant are in the background. A multi-colored basket is on the floor.

Isla and Jeme occupy the large room at the end of the hallway, while Suvi and Niklas have two smaller rooms. One of these serves as the couple's bedroom, and the other is reserved for their beloved hobbies, such as crafts and video games.

The shared living room is spacious, accommodating a sofa, dining table, and entertainment centre.

“This home has so many rooms that we have space to be both together and apart”, Suvi rejoices.

Check out available rental apartments over 80 square meters ›

No for adult-like decorating

In one corner of the living room, there’s an important relaxation nook, separated from the rest of the room by a bookshelf and a curtain made from a rainbow flag. You can slip in there if you need some peace and quiet but don’t want to be apart from others. The nook, also known as ‘the soft cave’, contains a mattress, pillows, and a pile of stuffed animals.

“The relaxation nook is a dream! We decided that since we’re adults, we can do whatever we want. And of course, we wanted a stuffed animal nook in our home!” Suvi laughs.

“The nook has been really important for all of us. Sometimes after a long workday, I’ve flopped down there and been very happy to just be surrounded by stuffed animals.”

“When decorating, you don’t have to be so adult-like. You can have fun too!” Niklas sums up.

Home that reflects its residents

According to the friends, decorating their shared home went surprisingly smoothly. The fact that there were four people's belongings and four different tastes to reconcile was only an advantage.

“We all have different things, and they complemented each other very well. Decorating the home was a bit like putting together a puzzle”, Isla describes.

“Now the home reflects all of us”, Jeme thinks. “And the living room combines everyone’s best features”, Suvi continues.

The visionaries behind the decor have mostly been Isla and Suvi. Their ideas include the lanterns and LED light strips that bring coziness and light to the walls.

“They bring a bit of a starry sky feel to the forest vibe”, Suvi says, referring to the houseplants in the room. The plants are their pride and joy, and they have accumulated nearly 50 of them.

“This home is a pleasant place for both people and plants”, Suvi laughs.

Game nights and thoughtful surprises

The only thing that rivals the number of plants in the living room is the massive board game collection in the bookshelf. This collection belongs to Isla, and the flatmates often enjoy it together.

“We’ve all become better losers through the games”, Suvi admits.

“Our focus is on playing a good game rather than on winning. Also, nothing external to the game should be brought into it”, Isla emphasizes.
Jeme, Isla, Suvi and Niklas playing a board game, sitting on the floor of their living room. In the background, there is a dark sofa with a beige throw blanket and an orange cushion on it, as well as a bookshelf filled with board games and green plants. On the left side of the image, there is a large house plant and a white stool.

Another favourite pastime of the flatmate quartet is watching tv-series – and discussing them late into the night.

“We always have a series that we’re watching, commenting on, and analyzing together”, Suvi says and continues: “For example, watching Netflix’s ‘Ultimatum: Queer Love,’ it took us at least an hour and a half to get through an hour-long episode because we kept stopping to discuss.”

“It was an educational series to watch, and we got a lot out of it by analyzing the relationships between the participants. Who acted correctly? Who should have acted differently?” Isla continues.

The flatmates also love surprising each other. When Suvi and Niklas returned home from their trip to Amsterdam, they were greeted with a croissant breakfast made by Jeme and Isla. Isla, on the other hand, received a homemade cake from the flatmates in honor of the official name change.

“Surprises are our way of showing we care”, Suvi smiles.

Take a read: The lease agreement of a shared apartment

We at SATO are pro shared living as long as you take into account the rental lease agreement is signed with a maximum of two residents per home. These residents are called 'päävuokralainen' (the main tenant).

The main tenants then sign an 'alivuokrasopimus' (sub-letting agreement) with the other roommates. The main tenant is required to inform SATO about the other residents. This is easily done via the OmaSATO web service. The main responsibility of the apartment and rent payments is always on the main tenant(s).

Lastly, here is one more thing to read before diving into a shared living: Kela's instructions regarding the general housing allowance.