Renting advice

dboughtwood

Hi all i m thinking of renting a 2 bedroom flat from a private landlord and i have known this landlord for 6 yrs and currently work at the same place as them to. i m wanting to know some advice on moving out for the first time what to remember to do before moving in and when i first move in??? also rough idea of bills and if my workings out are fairly accurate??

Rent £490 pcm
Water/gas/electric about £45 each every 3 months
Council tax £100-£130
Tv license £120 a yr
contents insurance £15 pcm
internet/sky/phone £30-£70 pcm

am i looking at a rough figure of £800 a month to cover essential bills
car insurance is £65 a month and have one loan repayment of £50 a month.

i know i need to think and work it all out before i agree and hence why i m asking for advice and can electric etc be paid for each month or just every 3 months??? will the landlord have contents insurance included in their own insurance on the house??? what things do i have to ask the landlord before i go ahead eg decorating, getting sky etc??

many thanks and sorry for the long post need to be sure of everything before i move out

HGLTsuperstar

Council tax you can find by checking on your council's website (need to know what band your property is in)
Your estimate of £15/month for gas and elec is very optimistic!
TV licence is £138.50 for the year
The net/sky/phone package will depend on what you want channel-wise, who you go with etc but you could easily get that down to £20/month providing you live in an area with Sky broadband.
You will need to clear it with the landlord re:Sky to be safe (remember also it's a 12month contract with Sky but you can move it to a new address)
The gas and elec can be paid by monthly DD or quarterly if you want but the DD option will give you a discount. Of course you may find you have an outstanding balance when you leave if the monthly DD isn't enough to cover usage (and price hikes).
As for insurance- your contents need your own insurance.
Think that should get you started, I'll let someone else chip in now.

McKneff

i think you water/gas/electric is going to cost you a lot more than that!!!!:eek: :eek:

dboughtwood

well a mate of mine has a similar 2 bed flat and £45 each for electric and water is what he pays so went on that basis. cant see them being more than £50 for each water, electric etc really as its a fairly small space.

i just wanna make the right choice and not move out and realise i have to move back home with my parents lol.

sooz

Since you've known the LL for such a long time, why don't you ask him what his usual bills are at the property. Or if he's not lived there, to ask his current or previous tenants.
£45 in total per quarter for gas, water & electricity on a two bed flat is wildly optimistic. If you don't have a water meter, that alone would be about £200 per year - so £50 per quarter.

Or do you mean £150 per quarter for gas, water & electricity?

water - if not on a meter is paid in two installements, usually april & october.
other bills are normally every 3 months if you pay upon receipt, or you could arrange a monthly DD
The LL should have contents insurance for his own things - he cannot insure yours.
Yes - you need to ask permission to decorate, install sky etc. Get this permission in WRITING

SunnySusie

Take photos of everything when you move in. No matter how nice LLs appear they always try it on when you move out...

lil_me

Water rates when I had a small flat were £20 a month, I paid £40 a month G&E but that was some time ago now. Landlord will hopefully have buildings insurance but you need your own contents insurance. Sky is a 12 month contract usually so would be best knowing you're staying before signing up.

dboughtwood

thanks everyone and the sky i think i would get 6 months into the agreement then i know for certain if i m staying. as for water etc my mate pays £45 quarterly for electric and £45 for water and £45 for gas thats what i based mine on.

thanks for the advice so far

loulou41

That's seems reasonable compared to daughter who has just moved into a 2 beds flat and is paying £90 for gas and electricity a month. It is a big flat, council tax is £130 a month and not sure how much for water.

dboughtwood

Has anyone else got ideas of what to expect and how they found moving out first time????

more advice the better thanks