If you get the right roommate, you can make your own choices of where to live. It will give you time to see if this is the right guy for you. Uprooting your life is painful, especially if you have pets. Since you are so young, you don't need to make big plans right now.

With the right roommate, you can build the life you want, with the stability you want. Everything else is optional, except the cats of course, they are family.