Worried about salary to rent ratio

shortcrust

I think 875 all included on 23k is ok, but you really would have to be frugal. Yes the OP would be better off somewhere cheaper but that's not what they want to do.

SuboJvR

And anywhere cheaper would mean much more commuting cost

It sounds like you have the opportunity to discuss directly with the landlady so I would absolutely give this a go. If you lay out your budget calculations very clearly for her she should see hopefully that you are being responsible. The other option is to suggest a guarantor if a parent may be willing?

Arleen

The problem your LL will see that yes while living frugally you can afford the rent, it only takes getting ill for few weeks for you to fall behind, and there is no money to save and build up a bad-times-cushion. Hence the 2.5 times ratio which is used as a guideline, as this way you can live comfortably and save money every month for bad times.

The reality is that you will struggle to get those places with current income. As you say you cannot go without an ensuite but is that for medical reasons, or a matter of a strong preference? If the latter, well, you may just have to give it up and suffer from a communal one - just like most people in your position do who want to pursue the career. This should easily shave 200-300 quid of the rent, making it affordable and saving you whopping 3k+ a year.

If it's not an option for medical reasons then you have to earn more, maybe look for a weekend job?

I don't say it to bring you down, but the reality is that living frugally sounds good in theory, but few months of living like that in London you will be sick of it (especially when you are stuck with it, not doing it as choice), which is why some people here say that it's impossible - it's usually experience speaking from people who tried. So it's best to pre-empt it, one way or another.

hign10pines

Shadowdnight wrote: »

Don't really have much choice, the career(VFX Artist) i've chosen is notorious for severely underpaying for the amount of work hours you'll end up doing definitely at the big three. Most of the industry in England is based in London mostly Soho.

It's my first full time job in the industry so i'm sure my salary will go up after the first 3-5 years. And probably after the first 2 I could leave and find a smaller company that pays so much more. With the work i'll be doing in the first 2 years i'll have an incredibly good portfolio for future jobs. At this point I think i'm just going to have to find some !!!! hole for £600 pcm and try not to get stabbed or acid thrown on me when walking to the station.

I lived on £17k when in London and wouldn't pay more than £500 a month for a room, zone 2 to 4, areas you think are horrible probably aren't. I've lived North (crouch end) & East (mile end/bow) I wouldn't go further east/north east though.

cyantist

Shadowdnight wrote: »

I've done my calculations and I can survive on 875 rent, I'm quite frugal on a lot things. I absolutly can't go without an ensuite where ever I end up which really bumps up the price unfortunately.

I'm not really sure what exactly to say to her without making it seem like I'm not confident I can pay the rent even though I am.

Are you sure you've included everything? I moved to London on a £34k salary, I'm also pretty frugal and I was paying £600 rent, then about £85 for bills. I coped ok on that, but really don't think I could have managed if I was earning over 10k less.

If it's a house share I'm not sure why there's so many fees. I've rented rooms as a tenant, as well as rented rooms out as a landlord and there's only ever been a deposit to pay.

Where is it? It seems very expensive. There are some very nice places for a lot less than you're talking about, and they're not horrible areas. On a limited salary living further out might be better. Although your travel will be more if you are further out, a zone 1-6 travelcard is only about £100 a month more than a zone 1 only travelcard, yet rent will be a lot less.

Aliliva

As other people have mentioned, have a bit of a better look around, maybe pushing yourself in those areas that used to have a bad reputation. I live in London and I promise you, apart form a couple of streets, most of the town is safe and nice, even in areas that were considered not that good some 10 years ago.
Just a word of caution from someone slightly older than you: being frugal in London is terribly complicated. Those suburbs you're snobbing now cause they're not posh enough are also the places where you can find a Lidl or Aldi, instead of having to rely on an overpiced little Waitrose for your weekly grocery. So have another look on spareroom, maybe deciding beforehand your upper limit for commuting time, then set yourself a rent budget that allows for travel costs + at least 300£/month, or you'll end up hating every moment here

caronoel

Worth considering some place like east Croydon. Fast links to London and Gatwick, and good access to the Surrey countryside.

Plenty of studios and 1 bed flats in the £600-700 range.

Monthly travel card is £239 for zones 1 to 6, compared to £131 for zone 1.

grad101

It's not true that cheaper rents are always outweighed by more expensive travel. I pay 810 (no bills incl) in zone 3, and have seen rooms for 650-700 in zone 2 - so lower rent and lower travel costs. 800 is around average for London but there are many rooms for less, especially if you don't live in the most popular areas (e.g. Clapham).

Don't get stuck on the first 3 rooms you look at, and explore more areas. Of course there are some areas in London with higher crime, but I've often found that places in London considered unsafe are not actually less safe - they are just less gentrified - and so feel unsafe for people who are used to growing up in more middle class areas. What I consider unsafe vs. what my posher friends from home consider unsafe are very different - there's a lot of perspective involved. I don't want you to end up somewhere you feel uncomfortable walking home at night, but don't write off certain areas without going there yourself.

And do you actually need an en suite? Surely you shared bathrooms at uni and at home? You'll probably find it's not worth how much it eats into your budget.

And as others above have cautioned - you'll spend a lot more in London than you think you'll do. There's always unexpected costs and things you forget to budget for. It's not fun being stressed about money and living paycheck to paycheck. You might find that you don't enjoy your time here if you can't afford to go out with friends or enjoy London for what it is. I earn around 30k and pay 800 in rent - I'm able to save every month but only by living frugally (I will wait until clothes and shoes have holes in before buying new ones for example), and I still find myself stressing about whether I can afford to go out with friends as much as I'd like. I'm lucky that I save (my housemates on the same salary don't) - and I do it because I know what London's like and if e.g. I lose some of my deposit or have to pay agency fees when I move I'm gonna need that money I put aside.