Wanted: New Roommaid

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For the women, the big challenge is weeding out the guys who are looking for sex--or a topless housekeeper or a personal masseuse--from the ones who genuinely want a platonic setup. Verve, who found her roommates by posting ads at grocery stores, says life got uncomfortable with one man, a music producer, when he began complaining, "'You cook for me, and then you just run off.' I was like, 'That's what I'm here for. Not to watch sports with you.'" Men also worry about sending confusing signals. McCarthy says he "purposefully picked someone I wasn't attracted to." Freitas goes further: he says it would be easier if his next housemate is a lesbian. "I'd like to meet somebody," he says, "but it's not going to be my roommate."

Of course, human relations aren't as easily managed as real estate transactions. "There have been one or two occasions when I've gotten involved," admits Bruce Kramer, 57, a divorced auctioneer who has had more than 12 people in as many years do housekeeping in exchange for free rent in his Brewster, N.Y., home. "Guys," he says, "always have it in the back of their mind."