Gradual release

[barkley]

The 4 of them are splitting $2250 in rent, plus utilities. It looks like it will be right around $750-$800 a person a month for rent, insurance, power, water, gas, trash, and pest control.

that would be a steal here. my oldest pays $975 per month for 1 bedroom. includes water and garbage-all other utilities and insurance are additional. this is considered VERY LOW for our area and i suspect it's only stayed that low b/c it's over 5 years renting at the same place and with all the money landlords lost during the pandemic eviction moratorium (still losing here b/c a newer state law put an extra step in the process which is adding upwards of 6 months between the notice to quit and a landlord being able to begin to get the court process going) the landlords want to retain proven paying tenants.

you have to pay extra for trash? isn't that like part of paying your taxes?

Yes that does happen in small towns here but I think most residents get a pass without paying. Cities it's part of paying taxes. Maybe OP lives in a small town.

i've never lived anywhere (big or little city) where garbage collection was free to residents. maybe a landlord would have a dumpster at an apartment complex so it was basically bundled into the cost of renting but free private home pickup? dang, that would save me about $70 per month.

 

[CdnCarrie]

that would be a steal here. my oldest pays $975 per month for 1 bedroom. includes water and garbage-all other utilities and insurance are additional. this is considered VERY LOW for our area and i suspect it's only stayed that low b/c it's over 5 years renting at the same place and with all the money landlords lost during the pandemic eviction moratorium (still losing here b/c a newer state law put an extra step in the process which is adding upwards of 6 months between the notice to quit and a landlord being able to begin to get the court process going) the landlords want to retain proven paying tenants.




i've never lived anywhere (big or little city) where garbage collection was free to residents. maybe a landlord would have a dumpster at an apartment complex so it was basically bundled into the cost of renting but free private home pickup? dang, that would save me about $70 per month.

It's part of your property taxes here - same as fixing roads.

 

[CdnCarrie]

Ugg. You all can keep the big bugs - I'll keep the snow.

 

[kdonnel]

that would be a steal here. my oldest pays $975 per month for 1 bedroom. includes water and garbage-all other utilities and insurance are additional. this is considered VERY LOW for our area and i suspect it's only stayed that low b/c it's over 5 years renting at the same place and with all the money landlords lost during the pandemic eviction moratorium (still losing here b/c a newer state law put an extra step in the process which is adding upwards of 6 months between the notice to quit and a landlord being able to begin to get the court process going) the landlords want to retain proven paying tenants.

I think it is a great deal here as well.

She should be comfortable financially with 3 roommates. If she tried to live on her own, her finances would not be as comfortable.

A neighbors son is moving to the Tampa area. He has found a 1 bedroom, a camper, that he is renting for $950 a month + utilities.

 

[kymom99]

Roaches, ants, spiders, etc. I don’t know anyone who doesn’t either have a monthly or quarterly service. I know many who thought they didn’t need one, tried to do it themselves, and ultimately hired someone.

We don’t have any of that here

 

[Colleen27]

I actually wondered about that. Each person on the lease is 100% responsible to pay the rent. So it makes sense that each person would need to show they could pay the rent in their own. Same for co-signers, which is why I asked about the co-signer meeting the income requirements.

Yeah, but traditionally (or at least when I was young enough to have roommates) multiple lessees on a single shared lease were treated as a household, no different from if you rented a place with a spouse, and the "household" income was considered for qualification. Separating that out makes it a lot harder to use sharing space as a way to afford independence. But several of the places DD looked at for the year she lived off campus had the same rules - every adult on the lease had to independently qualify on both income and credit score. The only way income could be combined was if the applicants were a legally married couple, then household rather than individual income would be considered, but even that's not a given. I have a friend in SoCal who just lost out on a rental she thought would be her next home because the management company wanted her and her husband both to qualify separately and they just can't clear that hurdle in a market where a $3000/mo rental is a great find. Following her housing saga - they're losing the house they're in now because the owner decided to sell while prices are high and they've been hunting for a suitable replacement for 6+ months so far - makes me very glad I'm old and settled.

 

[indimom]

Question: As a co-signer do you qualify, based on your income alone, to rent the place?

I would say 'technically' I meet the criteria. But, realistically, we could never have paid for her living expenses and our own. We have our own expenses to manage; and, her rent is more than double our mortgage. OUCH. That's the difference between Atlanta and rural Indiana.

 

[barkley]

we've got at least one apartment complex near us that specifically markets the ability for roommates to have separate leases. the set up for 2 and 3 bedroom units is that the bedrooms are all set up with their own ensuite bathrooms so the shared space is the living room, kitchen and washer/dryer closet (washer and dryer for each apartment provided by the complex). when i looked at the going rates it was a smidge higher than what a traditional shared would run but it did include all utilities, internet and protected individuals if one roommate bailed on rent.

 

[disneychrista]

I would say 'technically' I meet the criteria. But, realistically, we could never have paid for her living expenses and our own. We have our own expenses to manage; and, her rent is more than double our mortgage. OUCH. That's the difference between Atlanta and rural Indiana.

That is what I meant. “On paper” your income would allow you to rent the place on your own. Not could you actually afford to pay her rent and your own. My income would not qualify me to rent. My daughter makes about $5k more a year than I do. I’m not sure I could co-sign for her. My mortgage is including insurance & property tax escrow is about $800 less than the rent for a studio.

 

[barkley]

oldest's employer just announced they will be providing employees a $1 per gallon discount on gas purchased at their worksite adjacent/employer owned gas station. given that it's already the least expensive gas station in the area (same as costco if you have an anybody can get type loyalty card) that will be helpful to the kiddo's budget!

 

[DLgal]

Trash is not always part of your taxes and handled by the taxing municipality. In some areas trash is a private contracted service. You have your choice of trash providers.

I have never lived anywhere that was bug free that was not being regularly treated for pests.

Yes I was referencing personal liability and renters insurance.

Trash here is provided by a company, but you don't get to choose. It's one company that services the entire city. You have to pay for the trash and recycling bins by setting up an account and paying monthly. They have automated trucks that pick up amd dump the bins. No trash man. They won't pick up anything outside of the bins. As a renter, it's simply included in our rent. We pay gas, electricity, and water.

We don't have pest control here. Don't need it. Not really any problematic bugs around here. The occasional ant infestation is easily handled with some terro baits.

But, if there was a house wide infestation, that would fall on our landlord to pay for.

 

[disneychrista]

Trash here is provided by a company, but you don't get to choose. It's one company that services the entire city. You have to pay for the trash and recycling bins by setting up an account and paying monthly. They have automated trucks that pick up amd dump the bins. No trash man. They won't pick up anything outside of the bins. As a renter, it's simply included in our rent. We pay gas, electricity, and water.

That is how it is here too. The City & County for those in unincorporated areas negotiate with company's to provide service. You can either choose to accept the service or not. I guess if you choose to not you take your trash to the transfer station yourself.? In fact we just got a new provider for the unincorporated areas, the same provider as what the city has.

 

[barkley]

where we are everything depends on the service area of individual companies. in some areas you have multiple options while in others (like our own) it's only one choice. we have the option of transporting our own garbage to the 'dump' (nothing like i think of as a 'dump' as compared to those of my youth-these are enclosed and air conditioned) but esp. with the current cost of gas it would be more expensive to do it weekly as compared to weekly pickup. i don't see many neighbors utilize it but b/c we are 'rural' we have the option to elect to have a dumpster vs. a traditional trash can. i suspect if the neighbors did a price comparison on having a dumpster on a 2 week disposal pick up vs. a smallish trash can on a weekly they would opt for the dumpster.

 

[kymom99]

That is how it is here too. The City & County for those in unincorporated areas negotiate with company's to provide service. You can either choose to accept the service or not. I guess if you choose to not you take your trash to the transfer station yourself.? In fact we just got a new provider for the unincorporated areas, the same provider as what the city has.

Here in the city trash service is paid for with your property taxes. It’s a separate line item on the city tax bill. However, in the dark ages when the area was unincorporated, we burned what would burn in a barrel and dumped the other stuff over the hill. I swear.

 

[tvguy]

It's part of your property taxes here - same as fixing roads.

The County provides trash pickup here only for single family homes, and commercial properties with 4 or less units (duplexes and four plexes). I pay $210 every two months for trash pickup, being hooked up to the sewer, and storm drain system. It just went up $10 because under state law in California they now have to not only pickup trash, recycling, and green waste, but they have to pick up "organics" and compost them. Organics are combined with the Green Waste......and organics are anything that is composable.........meat scraps, egg shells, fruit and vegetable scraps, bones, food contaminated uncoated paper, coffee grounds, etc.
Commercial properties of 5 units (generally apartments) or more have to contract with Private Trash Companies, who provide dumpsters. No idea what that costs.

 

[cvjw]

The County provides trash pickup here only for single family homes, and commercial properties with 4 or less units (duplexes and four plexes). I pay $210 every two months for trash pickup, being hooked up to the sewer, and storm drain system. It just went up $10 because under state law in California they now have to not only pickup trash, recycling, and green waste, but they have to pick up "organics" and compost them. Organics are combined with the Green Waste......and organics are anything that is composable.........meat scraps, egg shells, fruit and vegetable scraps, bones, food contaminated uncoated paper, coffee grounds, etc.
Commercial properties of 5 units (generally apartments) or more have to contract with Private Trash Companies, who provide dumpsters. No idea what that costs.

Wow. That is high for trash and recycling. I pay $80 for six months of trash and recycling pickup. If I only wanted trash pickup, it is $60 for 6 months.

 

[DisneyHardin]

It's interesting to read how trash is handled in different parts of the country. When I lived in a small town in central Kentucky, our trash was paid for as a line item on our water bill - you didn't have any choice but to have it. They would pick up anything you put out even big stuff like furniture, yard waste, etc. I then moved to Louisville when I got married, but live in a class-D city within the city that we pay additional property taxes to - our trash is included with those taxes. We have curbside trash, recycle and yard waste and they will pick up large items if you schedule it in advance.

 

[TwoMisfits]

Wow. That is high for trash and recycling. I pay $80 for six months of trash and recycling pickup. If I only wanted trash pickup, it is $60 for 6 months.

Sewer is pricey - that goes in my water bill, but the previous poster has it in the trash bill...

 

[mjkacmom]

It's interesting to read how trash is handled in different parts of the country. When I lived in a small town in central Kentucky, our trash was paid for as a line item on our water bill - you didn't have any choice but to have it. They would pick up anything you put out even big stuff like furniture, yard waste, etc. I then moved to Louisville when I got married, but live in a class-D city within the city that we pay additional property taxes to - our trash is included with those taxes. We have curbside trash, recycle and yard waste and they will pick up large items if you schedule it in advance.

Our trash and recycling is included in our taxes, twice a week trash, once a week recycling, once a week vegetation, once a week bulk (like furniture).

 

[Pea-n-Me]

We pay around $900 (DH corrected me it’s $1200) two or three times a year for water, trash, sewer and recycling. I’m sure it’s gone up, too.