How To Reduce Your Rent Without Moving In With Mum and Dadfeatured
With the average rent costing £768 in the UK, it’s no surprise that so many people are struggling to save up for a home of their own. After all, how can young people gather a deposit together when most of their wages is being given to their landlord?
For those desperate to become home owners, it makes sense to do everything they can to minimise living costs in order to boost the amount they can put away in savings.
Some people find that moving in with their parents for a short while is the best solution. By giving up their freedom and moving in with mum and dad, they can significantly reduce their monthly expenditure and devote their hard-earned cash towards saving for a deposit instead.
However, moving in with family isn’t a possibility for everyone. Thankfully though, there are other options to consider…
Live in a shared house
Rather than renting a property alone, see if you can gather together a group of friends and start hunting for a place to share. A shared flat or house is likely to work out much cheaper than renting a place all to yourself, and you’ll also be able to split the bills. If your friends are already sorted when it comes to living arrangements, pop over to SpareRoom and see if you can flatshare with strangers.
Move in with home-owning friends
Ask around and see if you have any home-owner friends with a spare bedroom up for grabs.
By becoming their lodger you may be able to pay significantly less than you would if you were to become a tenant elsewhere. You never know, you friends may be more than happy to have you around. Your contributions could help to lower their bills and reduce their mortgage repayments.
If your friends have never had a lodger before, make sure they know about the Rent A Room scheme. This will allow them to earn up to £4,250 a year in rent tax-free.
Sub-let
If you’re currently renting a property and you have an empty room, consider taking in a lodger to reduce rent and bills. It’s best to get in touch with your landlord before you do this though, as you could find yourself in trouble if you get caught letting out a room in the property without their permission. If you’d like to know more, Citizens Advice has some great information on this topic.
Rent in a cheaper area
Could you rent a flat or house in a slightly cheaper part of your town or city? It’s amazing how much rental prices can differ between neighbouring towns. While you may be paying £600 a month to rent a room in a desirable area, that slightly less popular village nearby may only set you back £400 each month.
Live in a castle
Thanks to ‘property guardian‘ schemes, it’s possible to move into a listed building for as little as £35 a week. You could find yourself living in a castle, old hospital, school, or stately home.
Don’t be expecting a butler, chef or cleaning lady, though. There’s a reason these properties are cheap, and that’s because some of them may not be in the best condition.
You also won’t have the same rights as a regular tenant, and if the property owners decide that they want you to leave, you may not be given much notice.
Share a room
I’m kind of joking with this one but I thought I’d include it in this list because I can’t believe people are having to go to these lengths to put a roof over their heads.
Due to sky-high rents in London, an increasing number of people are opting to share rooms with strangers in order to afford basic living costs.
I think this says a lot about the state of the UK property market at the moment. It really does highlight how difficult it can be for people to afford to pay their own rent, let alone save up to buy a home of their own.
If you can think of any other tips to reduce the cost of rent, I’d love to hear from you in the comments below. Alternatively, you can reach me on Twitter @CantSwingACat.
