First time renter = How do I know if I can afford the bills for a rental property?

Carrot007

bigolsausage said:

Thanks so I've budgeted for around £100 each for electricity and gas maximum. Surely that's enough? 

As long as you plan no heating.

The costs are massive at the moment and only likely to go uo this year. I was paying £120, all current fixes are around £250ish,  so at least do not get put on a fixed tarrif and stay on the standard one as at least there is a cap (thing may change but I doubt it this year).

bigolsausage

Murphybear said:

If you haven’t already got a freezer then get one if you can.  We have tons of things in ours bought with special offers/reductions.  They can often be found on Freecycle.  Freecycle is also good for furniture to start off with. 

When you budget for gas/electric allow for increases over the next year or 2

i wish you luck.  I remember when I first set up home with my boyfriend.  It was scary at first but we got married so turned out ok. 

We're looking at properties with all white goods included so should be fine! Thanks for the tips with Freecycle! Furniture should be covered by the scraps from family for the short-term though!

Carrot007 said:

bigolsausage said:

Our budget for this property is £1100 maximum. 

As long as the is just for household stuff, eg the rent and other DD's, then I would say it's possibly vailble in some places.

If you expect travel/petrol/food/hosehold stuff (cleaning stuff shampoo, washing liquid etc) and all that sort of stuff in there I would say not a chance. Of course you may plan to never leave the house and only drink milk in which case... Maybe!

Expect gas/elec to be £200 a month and maybe £50 for water. Why would internet be each? mobiles now, that would be each.

£1100 is rent alone, so £550 each (maximum) + bills. Gas & electric, £200 a month in total? £15 a month each for internet - I reckon broadband is around £30 maximum a month so I've just split the cost between us.

thegreenone said:

Council Tax:  have you checked the borough council websites for the area you are looking in?

Have you driven recently?  Try looking on the big secondhand car sales sites, find a suitable car and do a dummy run on the comparison sites for insurance/tax.

Yes I've checked the council tax bands for each property we've seen. Around £180 a month. I sold my car about 5 months ago because it was expensive to maintain (a mini!) so I'm looking at a cheap little car now and checking insurance as I go.

ShinyYellowBoots said:

I live in a two bed Victorian conversion flat. To give you a rough idea, my monthly bills are approximately:

* Energy (gas and elec) - £80 at the moment in winter, but bracing myself for it to keep increasing
* Water - £25
* Contents insurance - £10
* Broadband - £25
* Council tax - £110 (actually a bit lower because I get the single person's discount but that won't apply to you)

Obviously it's all a bit "how long is a piece of string" and my water/energy consumption won't be the same as for a two person household, but hopefully that helps you to start putting together a budget. Good luck with your move! 

Don't forget TV licence from your list!

Thanks! We don't watch TV or BBC so not planning on paying for a tv license.

bargainbetty said:

Do you really need two cars, as that second bedroom is going to come at a premium - more rent, more council tax and slightly higher running costs. 

Can you look at conversion flats on residential roads where you can park or get permits? The cost of an extra permit might balance against the 2nd bedroom costs. 

If your bf is self-employed, has he told you what his average monthly earning are after tax? You need to have a proper understanding of his income before you link yourself in this way, because if your name is on the lease, you will be responsible for all the bills. If he has an off-month or gets ill, he will need to have back up funds in place to cover his share or you may well struggle. 

We need two cars to go to our two very separate jobs lol... We would prefer a house for the outside space and most spacious ones are two bedrooms. There are plenty of 1 beds but they don't meet the requirements we need, i.e. two parking spaces, outside space etc. He earns a set amount a month like I do.

canaldumidi said:

auctions. You can furnish a property for peanuts. White goods, TVs, rugs, kitchen utensils, you name it!

House clearace compaie put all this and more into auctions. Just go and visit a local one to view eg

https://peacockauction.co.uk/auction/bedford-29

Thanks. We're planning on getting some secondhand bits from family to begin with and will furnish in the upcoming months.

bigolsausage

Carrot007 said:

bigolsausage said:

Thanks so I've budgeted for around £100 each for electricity and gas maximum. Surely that's enough? 

As long as you plan no heating.

The costs are massive at the moment and only likely to go uo this year. I was paying £120, all current fixes are around £250ish,  so at least do not get put on a fixed tarrif and stay on the standard one as at least there is a cap (thing may change but I doubt it this year).

£200 a month is not enough for gas & electricity?!

Carrot007

bigolsausage said:

Carrot007 said:

bigolsausage said:

Thanks so I've budgeted for around £100 each for electricity and gas maximum. Surely that's enough? 

As long as you plan no heating.

The costs are massive at the moment and only likely to go uo this year. I was paying £120, all current fixes are around £250ish,  so at least do not get put on a fixed tarrif and stay on the standard one as at least there is a cap (thing may change but I doubt it this year).

£200 a month is not enough for gas & electricity?!

Ahh £100 each? Well it never splits equally so no good reason to seperate those costs so I was assuming £100 overall.

Should be fine then. Though I expect it to top £200 for me mainly becuase of heating by the end of the year unless trends mahjorly change. (I do use above average on electric but I think the average is ridiculously low).

bigolsausage

Carrot007 said:

bigolsausage said:

Carrot007 said:

bigolsausage said:

Thanks so I've budgeted for around £100 each for electricity and gas maximum. Surely that's enough? 

As long as you plan no heating.

The costs are massive at the moment and only likely to go uo this year. I was paying £120, all current fixes are around £250ish,  so at least do not get put on a fixed tarrif and stay on the standard one as at least there is a cap (thing may change but I doubt it this year).

£200 a month is not enough for gas & electricity?!

Ahh £100 each? Well it never splits equally so no good reason to seperate those costs so I was assuming £100 overall.

Should be fine then. Though I expect it to top £200 for me mainly becuase of heating by the end of the year unless trends mahjorly change. (I do use above average on electric but I think the average is ridiculously low).

Yeah sorry I mean £100 for me and £100 for him for gas & electricity together, if that makes sense?

We both work outside of the home so that should help too.

dimbo61

First thing to do is check on Rightmove what it costs for a 2 bed flat or house near you ?
South East and £550 a month ??
Deposit 5 weeks rent, guarantor ?

dimbo61

Citroen C1, Peugeot 108 or Toyota Aygo.

bigolsausage

dimbo61 said:

First thing to do is check on Rightmove what it costs for a 2 bed flat or house near you ?
South East and £550 a month ??
Deposit 5 weeks rent, guarantor ?

£1100pcm. So £550 each rent alone. 

Deposit is covered by savings. I'm looking at monthly costs only. 

Guarantor is boyfriends parents. 

Obviously we've already looked at properties and know whats in our budget. 

bigolsausage

dimbo61 said:

Citroen C1, Peugeot 108 or Toyota Aygo.

Looking at Toyota auris 2008ish 

Carrot007

bigolsausage said:

Carrot007 said:

bigolsausage said:

Carrot007 said:

bigolsausage said:

Thanks so I've budgeted for around £100 each for electricity and gas maximum. Surely that's enough? 

As long as you plan no heating.

The costs are massive at the moment and only likely to go uo this year. I was paying £120, all current fixes are around £250ish,  so at least do not get put on a fixed tarrif and stay on the standard one as at least there is a cap (thing may change but I doubt it this year).

£200 a month is not enough for gas & electricity?!

Ahh £100 each? Well it never splits equally so no good reason to seperate those costs so I was assuming £100 overall.

Should be fine then. Though I expect it to top £200 for me mainly becuase of heating by the end of the year unless trends mahjorly change. (I do use above average on electric but I think the average is ridiculously low).

Yeah sorry I mean £100 for me and £100 for him for gas & electricity together, if that makes sense?

We both work outside of the home so that should help too.

Ahh that split ;-) Yes should be fine, especially if you work outside the home (though to be fair I can still heat the house 24/7 to 22 degrees with what I save in petrol these days so who knows).