Tips For Sharing Living Costs With Roommates

April 26, 2023

Living with a roommate is something just about everyone has to do from time-to-time, but it is possible to make the headache of splitting up expenses hurt a bit less by following these few tips. First up, always be transparent with your roommates about the cost of rent, bills, shared food, and other communal costs. No one likes having extra fees sprung on them after they arrive, so try to have this conversation with your roommate before agreeing to live together. By staying transparent with them, it is possible to avoid awkward questions about where the money is going and how it is being used to support the household.

Let's dive into rent now!

Rent

You want to be fair when it comes to dividing up costs for rent, but it can be hard when bedrooms are bigger, and someone uses the living areas more than others. Here are three quick tips for dividing up the costs of living everyone should discuss with their roommates. First, consider a square footage division to favorably divide the space. To do this, use this simple mathematical formula.

Total Square Footage of Area ÷ Square Footage of Bedroom = Percent of Room Rental Division

Subtract that percentage from the total payment due to get the rest of the price and then divide this number up by the number of roommates who will be sharing the property.

If this division is not appropriate for your situation, consider the per-person approach where common rooms are assigned a value, and the rest of the amount due is divided up per person according to the bedroom they want. Don't forget to get the agreement in writing, so you can reference it to solve any future disputes.There are also online services that can help keep track of who owes what for the house, bills, and other unforeseen costs you might need help from your roommates in paying.

Continue reading to learn how utilities come into the equation.

Utilities

Utilities tend to be an even split since they are already calculated based on usage. Add the average cost of all the bills in the apartment and divide by the number of people splitting the apartment. This approach also avoids resentment if someone spends more time in the apartment or house than others.

You should also decide on a guest policy since girlfriends and boyfriends frequently spending the night and showering with roommates can drive up the cost of bills for the other housemates. Lack of compensation for the extra guest can lead to resentment among roommates, so avoid this by accounting for frequent guests before they stay.

Next up, learn how to handle communal groceries.

Groceries

Since roommates tend to have different lives and schedules, we suggest not splitting the grocery bill with your roommate unless you will have shared dinners. For everyday necessities like toilet paper, paper towels, laundry detergent, and other household items, however, add the cost of everything and divide it by the number of people who will be using the items.

Keeping a list of basic supplies for the house and their cost somewhere easily accessible, such as the refrigerator, will help remind everyone of these costs. Groceries are usually divided up per person and placed in a shared refrigerator, so be mindful of that. If you find yourself supplying more of the groceries than you would like in a roommate situation, consider asking them to chip in for these meals.

Continue reading to learn about the role of money and furniture and decorations.

Furniture And Decorations

Deciding how to split furniture and decorations can be tricky, so you should decide from the beginning who will be the one to keep these items after the lease is over. This individual should pay most of the initial cost, or even the entire cost depending on the item in question, though it is not unheard of to ask for a small fee to help cover the cost of replacing appliances or other big ticket items everyone in the household will use.Of course, decorations can cause other issues if roommates do not have the same taste. Any decorations in individual rooms should only be paid for by the person whose room it is. Decorations in communal rooms can be rotated if necessary, in which case each round would be paid for by one roommate, or decided upon as a group and treated the same as furniture regarding who pays.

Continue reading to learn about renter's insurance and its cost.

Insurance

Renter's insurance is a definite must for anyone renting an apartment, roommates or not. However, the cost of the insurance can get tricky when roommates come into the picture. Contact your insurance company for a quote on everyone's goods in the house and then split the cost evenly to keep everyone covered. If there are any questions about the necessity of this, remind your roommates this is sometimes the only way stolen or destroyed items will get replaced in the event of a disaster.

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