How do you find out how much bills will cost?

MissRP95

I've only ever lived in student accommodation where bills were all included with rent.  I've been looking to move into a flat and I've viewed a few, they've given me the cost of the rent per month but only an estimate of bills. 

How do I find out exactly how much the bills will cost as I want to work out how much the total cost will be per month?

MaryNB

You won't know exactly what they will cost because they will depend on which supplier you use and how much you consume.

If the bill estimates are comfortably within your price range you'll be fine. If not, best to go for a cheaper place. You need to allow for fluctuations. 

Tv & broadband - will be fixed for maybe 12-24 months but will then go up after the introductory offer. Either get a new deal after that or switch supplier.
Gas & electric - the direct debit will be based on an estimated average consumption divided by 12. But this will change if your annual estimated consumption goes up (e.g. bad winter) or down (good winter). Switching suppliers could reduce the bill. Check the tariffs, fixed are generally cheaper. 
Water - if the house is metered it will be based on consumption. If there's no meter it will be based on a fixed rate. 
Council tax - fixed for the tax year, generally goes up a little bit every year.

Hannimal

You cannot know this exactly.  You can only know your internet, council tax and water (if not metered). Otherwise you're best off looking at averages as they'll depend on your usage.

MissRP95

MaryNB said:

You won't know exactly what they will cost because they will depend on which supplier you use and how much you consume.

If the bill estimates are comfortably within your price range you'll be fine. If not, best to go for a cheaper place. You need to allow for fluctuations. 

Tv & broadband - will be fixed for maybe 12-24 months but will then go up after the introductory offer. Either get a new deal after that or switch supplier.
Gas & electric - the direct debit will be based on an estimated average consumption divided by 12. But this will change if your annual estimated consumption goes up (e.g. bad winter) or down (good winter). Switching suppliers could reduce the bill. Check the tariffs, fixed are generally cheaper. 
Water - if the house is metered it will be based on consumption. If there's no meter it will be based on a fixed rate. 
Council tax - fixed for the tax year, generally goes up a little bit every year.

Thank you, that's really helpful. I hope this doesn't sound like a dumb question but you mentioned about switching suppliers, can you have different water/energy etc suppliers in an apartment building. I would have assumed all the flats would use the same ones.

MissRP95

Morbier said:

I'm assuming to be a student you have to have a certain amount of intelligence.  Therefore, I'm hoping I misunderstood your question - are you asking how you work out exactly what (say) your electricity bill will be?  Or your gas/food/travel costs bills?  

If if someone can, please let me know too!

Not how you work out but how you find out the exact prices. For example should the landlords know, should the estate agents know or do you have to directly contact suppliers.
I understand how to find out living in a house as you are in complete control of it being the only tenants but as I am looking at flats in apartment buildings I wasn't sure how it works. 

MaryNB

Your water supply will be from the same company as everyone else in the building. For domestic purposes water companies produce, distribute and sell the water. So whoever your local water company is will also be your supplier. 

The energy industry allows suppliers to buy wholesale from producers and sell  it on so you'll be buying from a supplier who might not produce it. It's coming from the same source as everyone else in the building but the company you're paying to supply can be different. They'll charge their own tariffs and have their own customer support.
Don't just go with the cheapest. Check reviews and look out for exit fees as well.

Edit to add: If your bills are not included in the rent, the agency or landlord won't help you with bill amounts. It's entirely up to you to research, contact and set up accounts with suppliers.
A tenancy may prescribe an energy supplier but if you are responsible for bills you can change supplier and I recommend you research other suppliers and get the best one for you. I made the mistake of sticking with the one on my tenancy agreement once and regretted it.

davidmcn

MissRP95 said:

MaryNB said:

You won't know exactly what they will cost because they will depend on which supplier you use and how much you consume.

If the bill estimates are comfortably within your price range you'll be fine. If not, best to go for a cheaper place. You need to allow for fluctuations. 

Tv & broadband - will be fixed for maybe 12-24 months but will then go up after the introductory offer. Either get a new deal after that or switch supplier.
Gas & electric - the direct debit will be based on an estimated average consumption divided by 12. But this will change if your annual estimated consumption goes up (e.g. bad winter) or down (good winter). Switching suppliers could reduce the bill. Check the tariffs, fixed are generally cheaper. 
Water - if the house is metered it will be based on consumption. If there's no meter it will be based on a fixed rate. 
Council tax - fixed for the tax year, generally goes up a little bit every year.

Thank you, that's really helpful. I hope this doesn't sound like a dumb question but you mentioned about switching suppliers, can you have different water/energy etc suppliers in an apartment building. I would have assumed all the flats would use the same ones.

No (although very occasionally you get set-ups like that). Generally every flat has its own meters and it works just the same as houses would. You can find advice elsewhere on this site about utilities, and if you go to some of the comparison sites you can get estimates of what bills are likely to be - but will vary a lot depending on how good insulation is, how many hours you're at home, how hot you like the place to be, what your local climate is like, etc.

MaryNB

If you end up on a fixed tariff with an energy company, make sure to review your options when it ends. If you do nothing the energy company will automatically put you on their standard tariff which will more than likely be much more expensive. Check what new fixed tariffs are available and also check other companies. If you get a contract without an exit fee you can leave anytime.

Same with TV & broadband - make sure you contact the supplier when the initial contract ends. Otherwise, as with energy, you'll more than likely end up paying a much higher rate. Contact them for a better deal or switch supplier.
Not as easy to leave a TV & broadband contract early though. You'll need to check terms and conditions.

Petriix

Your water company is fixed, but you can (and should) choose your own supplier(s) for gas and electricity. Here's the process:
On the day you move in take meter readings for water, electricity and gas (if you have it) and take photos of the meters just in case anything goes wrong. 
Then find out who the suppliers are and contact them to open an account and select a tariff. Choose a tariff that doesn't have any exit fees so that you can switch suppliers without penalty.
Then do a full market comparison to find the cheapest supplier for your expected usage and initiate the switch; it will take a few weeks.
You will have to estimate based on how much energy you use and what type of heating and water heating you have. If it's all electric then heating will be expensive.
Choose a fixed rate tariff with the new supplier and pay by direct debit for the best price. Take meter readings on the day they tell you and then every month and provide these to the new supplier and keep them in a spreadsheet.
Inform the old supplier of the opening readings you gave to the new supplier. You will then get a final bill from the old supplier. Make sure that the readings on this are correct and be prepared to challenge them if not (this is where the photographs might help).
Finally make a note of the date your fixed rate will end and set a reminder for 49 days prior to that date to do another comparison and switch to whoever is cheapest at that point. Do that every year.
You may need to change the amount of your direct debit as your actual usage becomes clear. Remember that you will use much more energy in the winter.
It seems convoluted but it makes sense once you understand the process.

Robin9

When you do move into a flat take control of your utility bills - never let the landlord, estate agent or caretaker get involved in reading meters or setting up accounts.   

The actual consumption of energy is not a precise science - what you can control is the cost of that energy.