When moving into your accommodation, sorting student bills isn’t the most exciting task ever. But if you organise them straight away, you can start enjoying the more fun parts of moving house. This blog will guide you through sorting bills for your student house.
Establish Essential Bills
Some student houses come with bills included, like water, electricity, and gas whereas others don’t. When sorting your bills, start by noting which are and aren’t included in your property. After doing this, establish all your personal bills, like food shops and your phone contract. It’s useful to have in mind all the other things you’ll pay for in the month, like going for meals and buying clothes. Without noting these expenses, they can be forgotten.
Organise Payments
You should make sure you understand how your bills are paid for. For example, is a certain bill paid yearly or monthly? Which of your bills are fixed (they stay at the same price) and which are variable (they may change)?
Be sure that everything’s set up properly, like automatic payments. As soon as you can after moving in, you need to read your gas and electricity meter. These readings should be handed over to your energy supplier so that you’re only paying for what you’ve used.
All the expenses you have to pay for can add up quickly so be organised! Jot down in a notebook what all your bills are and when they come out. You could do the same with household bills by writing them on a sticky note and putting it on the fridge. This way, everyone can see the bills they have to pay. Having a physical note will help you and the people you live with avoid problems in the future.
Splitting Costs
Splitting costs can avoid arguments in the house. As a student, money can be tight. But by splitting expenses, you’re making yours and your housemates lives easier. At The Student Energy Group, we’ll combine all your utility bills into one. This can then be shared equally amongst everyone in the house. Doing this makes the whole process of paying bills a lot easier!
Setting Budgets Together
Setting your own personal budgets is a sensible thing to do. This is also something you can do as a household as well. It’s sensible to budget on new items which are bought for the house. If you’re buying a new furniture for your property and splitting it between you, a budget should be discussed beforehand.
This might not always be specific numbers but can be a way to save money as well. Some ideas include:
- Car sharing
- Budgeting on food shops
- Cutting down on takeaways
Communication in the House
To avoid arguments, a clear plan should be put together early on. Everyone should be aware of what they’re paying and when. If any changes are made (e.g., you decide to cancel a streaming service) the other housemates should be made aware first. Like they say, communication is key.
If you have any concerns, it’s always worth speaking up. This could be that something in your student house is faulty and will cost money to fix. Once you say something, your housemates might be willing to put money in to make changes like this.
Review Budgets and Costs Regularly
If you all find your bills are high, you might be able to work together to lower them in some cases.
If your water bill is on a metered tariff, you can do things like:
- Collect rainwater to water your plants
- Turn the water off in between brushing your teeth
- Fix leaky taps as soon as you can
To try and save money on your electricity bill, you can:
- Turn off plugs when not in use
- Switch off the lights when they don’t need to be on
If something like your broadband provider is too high, you may consider switching. If you split the cost of a streaming service between you but you don’t use it, cancel it. Little things like this can make differences.
Bill Splitting Made Easy with The Student Energy Group
Here at The Student Energy Group, we’ll combine all your bills into one monthly statement. This can then be split between you and everyone you live with using our student bills packages. Signing up with us means we’ll plant a tree as a step towards helping the environment. You can get a free quote from us today. Make splitting bills simpler!
