How to Split Bills in a House Share
It’s that time of the month, splitting bills. Many of us have been there, and if not you might be soon. How we share these payments can be a stressful time for tenants. It’s no secret bills have to be paid to keep a roof over your head. Someone has to pay these bills and it’s important to have a plan in place to make sure bills are paid in full and on time. Depending on the dynamics in the house and individual personalities, there are different ways sharers can solve splitting bills.
Apps
It’s the way of the world...there’s an app for everything! And money tracking apps are a thing. If you’re the type that hates owing money and wants to know the exact details, this is the solution for you. The most popular app is Splitwise and it can bypass the online banking if you’re prepared to use paypal. This is the easiest way to keep tabs on the amount every tenant owes. Once you’ve created your group, plug in your rental, utility rates, and split ratio, and Splitwise will track, remind, and pay. The monthly IOU reminders are great and any bill can be sent to individuals e.g. groceries or takeaway.
Principal
To make this work, everyone in the house needs to know and trust each other. This individual can be selected or self appointed and should be responsible and willing to put their name on the bills and pay. They have the responsibility of tracking money and can track this however they see fit. To make this work everyone needs to know each other well and be able to bring any queries to the principal. This is a more relaxed approach to splitting bills, and due to the amount of trust involved, doesn’t work for everyone.
Agreeing
Preferably before signing the contract you should come to an agreement with how the rent gets split. As long as the estate agent is getting their total sum it’s fine to split the rent however you see fit amongst yourselves. It’s not a perfect world and certainly not a perfect property if you’re house sharing. Things like room size and ensuites can all affect the rent rate. A solution could be to set tiers on the bedrooms i.e. those with ensuites pay the top tier rate which is lower than the third tier rate of a ‘box’ room. The exact figures need to be discussed and agreed upon with the house sharers.
At the end of the day (month) each tenant is responsible for their share of the rent and utility bills. How you want to split this can be flexible and isn’t an issue as long as the bill is paid in full. It is important to bear in mind that if your income is below a certain amount each month, each tenant must have a rent guarantor in place to act for them if rent isnt paid. It’s a comfort netting for estate agents and landlords. Each individual will need their own guarantor and guess what? It can be a company, like Rent Guarantor.
