Renting bills

kayandy_2

Hi everyone,
I'm thinking of renting a 1 bed flat for myself I do have income coming in each month and I know my rent will be £93 a week which I will be able to afford I'm just wondering what the estimate of my other bills would be need to make sure I can afford it before renting it!! Any advice would be welcome

scubaangel

How long's the proverbial bit of string?

You can likely find out the tax band from the local council, but beyond that, it'll be dependant on gas or electric, how much you'll want to use the heating/hot water.
You might be able to find out the water rates, or cost per unit if its metered.

kayandy_2

Ooo okay thankyou I know my council tax I was just looking for estimates of how much other people living by themselves pay type thing to be honest but thank you

Lavendyr

Council tax = somewhere between £60-£100 depending on band and area (estimate including single occupier discount - if you are the only occupier you will get the single occupier discount which I believe is 25% off the usual cost).

Utilities = somewhere between £30-£50 depending on whether you are duel fuel or electric only and how efficient you and the flat are

Water = if metered, estimate £15-£20 a month. If not metered, probably more like £30-£40 a month.

Phone line rental/broadband = depends on what package you get, we pay around £25 a month for phone (including calls) and unlimited broadband

Contents insurance = £5-£10 a month

So I'd estimate somewhere between £135-£225 a month.

kayandy_2

Thank you so much yeah I'll be living there by myself

BitterAndTwisted

I Live by myself and pay the following:

Council Tax: £1k per annum paid over ten months, although it is possible to pay over twelve.

Gas & Electricity: £150 per quarter. This entails having little-to-no heating on for most of the time.

Water Rates: £8 a week.

Don't forget your TV license @ £12 a month plus internet/landline/mobile/cable telly if you can afford it

scubaangel

My last flat was all electric on economy 7 rates.
My bill quarterly was £75 - £90 depending on how much I'd had the heating on - but I wasn't there over night often as I stayed with the guy I was dating three or four nights a week.
Water rates were £30 monthly, council tax was £100 monthly over 10 months.
I was then paying £30 phone/tv/broadband, paid my tv license up front but if you're paying it by monthly dd it works out at £12 a month but you end up paying £24 for the first 6 months then it drops to £12 so you're paying for next years early.

Then there's furnishing costs if you're not renting a furnished property or don't already have your own stuff - I'd say conservatively I spent £1k on furniture stuff, bed, mattress, bedside tables, sofa, chair, bookcases, kettle, toaster, pans, crockery etc, bedding, curtains, electronics (tv, stereo etc).

Good luck, living alone is hard work at first but it's worth it.

kinger101

1 bed is almost certainly Band A council tax with 25 % discount for single occupancy. Check your local council for the amount.

My utilities (Gas and Electric) in a 2 bed semi are about £55 a month. I'm out during the day, but I'm a bit of a wuss when it comes to feeling the cold. The insulation is decent but the boiler is old.

My water bills probably around £120 a year on a meter.

Contents insurance varies greatly depending on where you live, how much cover you have, and whether you include bikes over a certain value etc.

If you need broadband, you'll pay around £25 a month, though lower initially as you'll get a deal at the start of a package.

TV licence is about £145 a year.

As a ballpark figure, I think you'll need an extra £40-50 a week to cover these bills (excluding groceries).

19lottie82

I live alone and pay £108 a month council tax and £85 a month for dual fuel.

A 1 bed doesn't always mean band A.

kayandy_2

Thank you so much that's a big help

CLAPTON

make sure you have some savings before you move into rented ..say 3 to 6 months 'normal' living costs