Altars acquire clutter. A candle burns down, a useful surface attracts post, and the stone with an excellent reason for being there eventually becomes the stone nobody quite remembers moving.
Bookshelves behave in much the same way. Folklore and mythology sit beside novels, instruction manuals and books bought for reasons that did not survive the journey home. None of this photographs as well as a carefully arranged room. It does, however, look like somebody lives there.
There is a strange pressure to keep spiritual objects separate from the untidy parts of a household. The altar must remain composed while everything around it carries on as usual. This is difficult to maintain and not obviously useful. A sacred object does not become less important because somebody left a receipt beside it.
Homes reveal habits more honestly than profiles do. One person wants every object in its proper place. Another needs three open books and a project covering half the table. Neither approach is especially Pagan, but the difference may matter a great deal if those people are considering living together.
So look at the room as it is. Move the post if the candle needs lighting. Put it back afterwards if that is where it belongs.