One bedroom flat running costs

mbynwa

I am currently saving like mad to get a nice deposit to be able to purchase a flat by the end of the year, whilst doing this I am working through a budget so I know how much I will need to spend on everything up front, and then on a monthly basis.

I would like some idea of running costs for a flat on a monthly basis, this would be how much water is, gas and electricity, as I have absolutely no idea how much these cost on a month by month basis.

Could those that have a one bedroom flat please give me some idea of how much their monthly bills are?

Cheers

NOVASTAR

HI there!
I sold my one bedroomed flat 18 months ago, after almost 10 years of ownership.
If I remember correctly the following amounts were what I paid out on a monthly basis.
Electric only (economy 7) £30
Phone - £25
Council Tax (single person) £74
TV licence - £12
Management Company - £55 (included water rates, communal lighting, communal gardens)
I think that was all of it excluding the mortgage, personal outgoings and food.
Hope this helps you out !

bitsandpieces

Gas and electric on my 2 bedroom flat work out at about £350/year. Varies a lot with the flat in question (insulation, how heated, size, etc.) and usage (how warm do you like it, are you at home much, etc.), though. I'm paying about £20/month for water - again, though, varies widely depending on area. If you've got gas central heating, you'll need an annual check for the boiler - I'd suggest budgeting about £100/yr for that, though you may be able to get it for nearer the £50 mark (some parts of the country may be more expensive ).

You should also keep some money back for repairs/updates etc. to your flat. If you get a flat that's part of a block, you know you'll also have to budget for service charge, and keep some spare in case there's a bit work that the leaseholders need to contribute lump sums to :eek:

Pee

The council tax will vary from area to area, but about £76 here, so pretty good estimate!!!
With the phone if you live alone, could you just use your mobile?
Water rates would be variable but about £30 a month, so a good idea to get a water meter, should be more like £10 a month then. Just watch out as my ex motherinlaw paid something like £6 a month water rates where she lived and the meter would have been more. If you don't have economy seven you may be looking at more like £40 for the electric. (Although I don't pay water rates and have the electric running a bore hole to consider, so hard to tell.)

LouBlue

mbynwa wrote: »

I am currently saving like mad to get a nice deposit to be able to purchase a flat by the end of the year, whilst doing this I am working through a budget so I know how much I will need to spend on everything up front, and then on a monthly basis.

I would like some idea of running costs for a flat on a monthly basis, this would be how much water is, gas and electricity, as I have absolutely no idea how much these cost on a month by month basis.

Could those that have a one bedroom flat please give me some idea of how much their monthly bills are?

Cheers

Our flat is in a terraced house, first floor, large one bedroom Victorian flat on the South Coast, there are 2 of us living there by the way.

£90 gas and electricity
£95 Council Tax
£20 Water meter


Ground rent is £50 a year, we don't pay a set maintenance charge as we sort anything out between ourselves and the ground floor flat occupants.

hth.

Guitar

bitsandpieces wrote: »

Gas and electric on my 2 bedroom flat work out at about £350/year. Varies a lot with the flat in question (insulation, how heated, size, etc.) and usage (how warm do you like it, are you at home much, etc.), though. I'm paying about £20/month for water - again, though, varies widely depending on area. If you've got gas central heating, you'll need an annual check for the boiler - I'd suggest budgeting about £100/yr for that, though you may be able to get it for nearer the £50 mark (some parts of the country may be more expensive ).

£350/year is really cheap. is there any particular reason?

On my two bedroom flat I pay around £850-900 year. I'm out most of the day, only ever use heating in the coldest depths of winter (otherwise gas use is just daily baths and occasional cooker use. Don't have a TV, computer being the only power hungry appliance I can think of.

bitsandpieces

Guitar wrote: »

£350/year is really cheap. is there any particular reason?

On my two bedroom flat I pay around £850-900 year. I'm out most of the day, only ever use heating in the coldest depths of winter (otherwise gas use is just daily baths and occasional cooker use. Don't have a TV, computer being the only power hungry appliance I can think of.

It's surrounded on most sides by other flats, so I suspect loses relatively little heat that way. I tend to shower at the gym (not at home) and don't like having the place too hot. I've also just got a good price on gas and electric (just using price comparison sites). Otherwise, don't know. If bills are surprisingly high, I'd look into it - but surprisingly low, I don't

mbynwa

Thanks for all the posts, very useful to get some real figures of the general costs i will be looking at.

Cheers