How much do you charge a roommate?
I have a 2300 square foot home with a newly done backyard with pool and patio and looking to get a roommate. Now they will have thier own room, use of everything in the house, childcare service provided as well as high speed internet. Also have storage for their items included. I have never had a roommate before and not sure how to figure out what I would charge. Can anyone help me figure this out? I am planning on having them sign a rental agreement as this will be a month to month gig with a 30 day notice. I just need some advice on how to figure out what the monthly rent should be. Thanks in advance for the help!
How much should I charge my roommate?
I have a 3 bedroom home. It's in great condition. All utilities except for cable tv will be supplied because I do not watch much tv and can live without it. Roommate will have own bathroom, access to the kitchen, nice neighborhood, quiet and clean home. My roommate will be staying 3 nights out of the week. I figure a hotel would charge at least $600 per month for 12 nights a week during the week but they have cable available. Now i'm doing my roomate a favor bcuz the stay will not be long. Only until roommate is able to find another job in a different city. How much should I charge my roomate?
How much to charge for a roommate?
Split the utilities equally among people if all are adults living in the house unless there is serious usage by one person. If there are kids, then all kids should equal one adult share (per family). To decide how much rent to pay is going to be a bit tougher. How many rooms are there, and shared by how many people? For instance, if there are 3 adults in 3 rooms, consider each room $400 with all thing being equal. Usually they are not equal, so you also have to take into consideration the rooms. If one is a master bed with attached bathroom that no one else uses, then that room should rent for more, conversely if the room is much smaller than the other rooms or inconveniently located (or has some other drawback such as poorer circulation or heating) consider in pricing. Also, let us say there are 4 adults in a 3 bedroom, you may want to consider charging the pair slightly more (as they will use the bathroom and other stuff more than a single), but not much. 4 in a 3 room with all things equal may be $500 for the pair and $350 for the singles, or $450 and $375. This makes the rent situation a little more fluid but equitable. Now, if you are just renting a room out of your house, remember that this will be there house too. Once you calculate what you think is fair, look at other local listings to see if you are in line with the market. If you choose to ask for a deposit, remember to keep that safe because you will need to return it if there are no damages, and be sure to write up a contract. Don't be afraid to ask for references. You also may want to ask for a little more than your first estimate to take care of things that always come up that need to be done that you can't really ask for more money for, such as furnace cleaning, yard care, or a sudden expenditure. If they are bringing a puppy, ask for a pet deposit. I would think that $300 for a deposit is not unreasonable. Allow them to pay this over a 3 month period if they are unable to do it all at once. Tell them that to get the deposit back they must (fill in the blank... no damage, clean carpets with steamer, etc.). Also, you can make this a non-refundable pet deposit, just get it in writing and be clear before hand about what the expectation is and what the course of action will be. Good luck!
Roommate charging my friend?
Actually. I hate to say it, but your friend should contribute something to the utilities. Especially if you two are splitting rent and utilities 50/50. With an extra person staying for several weeks, then you should look at previous utility bills and make sure that your roommate isn't paying additional utility costs. Utilities are bloody expensive, so your roommate should NOT be paying the extra for your friend. If your friend was staying for a couple days to one week, then I would suggest not worrying about things...but several weeks is fairly extensive and your friend can rack up the utilities. Just have your friend contribute an extra 50-100$ just to make up for extra costs incurred...your friend will shower, won't he. Your friend should also be paying for his own food...but that's obvious. Think about if you were in your roommate's position. If your roommate had a friend over for a couple weeks and your utilities shot up 100$. Would you be willing to pay that extra 50$ (1/2 of the increase)? I can assure you that you would be upset about that and not overly keen on paying extra to cover the water that your roommate's guest used. (uh...unless you pay a set monthly rate for utilities...then tell your roommate to shove it. This is also why your friend should not be paying rent. There are still two people living there, your roommate is a guest and using your room...therefore the rent shouldn't be imposed on him...)
Should I be charging my roommate for gas...........?
Do you have to go out of your way to drop him off (even pulling over is a mild inconvenience)? Have you ever had to wait for your roommate because he wasn't ready yet? Has he complained about the music you play or the radio station that you listen to? Does he ever have foul body odor? You are being inconvenienced by your roommate. It is up to you to determine to what degree. You are the one taking all of the responsibility in driving and staying insured and maintaining your car. You have the right to do whatever you want. If he is a pain to deal with, I would charge him the FULL amount of gas. I might even over charge him. If he doesn't like it, tough. If he is a nice guy, then I would charge him nothing. When you guys go out for drinks, make sure you remind him of your good deeds. If he gets the hint, he'll hopefully pay for a few rounds. You could also try using his logic against him. Next time he does laundry, ask him to throw some of your clothes in there with his. He's doing laundry anyway!
Is it fair for your roommate to charge you half?
If he owns the house it's his job to provide your basic 4 appliances, fridge, stove, washer, dryer. Any "extra" appliances you two decide you need/want (bbq, microwave, juicer, cappuchino maker, blu-ray, whatever) should be agreed upon mutually...if the idea is that he'll keep them even after you move out then he should be paying the majority, if there are two appliances you want, say a blu-ray and a microwave, and he wants to keep the blu-ray and you'd like to take the microwave with you then he should buy the one and you buy the other, with the understanding that both can use each appliance until you move out. Tell him either he pays in full for the appliances or you are reimbursed your whole 50% when you move out, perhaps you can make an agreement that your second last rent is free (assuming you're paying first and last) or something in lieu of the actual cash. Or that you'll pay half (if he doesn't have the money) but your first three months there are rent free and he gets to keep the appliances when you go. There shouldn't be any haggling about depreciation etc. Whoever buys them owns them and if you're going to be a renter, it should be him who buys them.
Charging my roommate rent at the house I own?
Regarding the answer to your first question. Even though you need to put more money into Your Home the roommate could also find another place to rent a room at. Lets look at it this way. If your roommate was not there your mortgage payment would be $515.00 and the cost would be all yours including all repairs, Gas and electric. Now you have someone paying on 50% of Your Homes mortgage and they are not getting a dime in return when you have the total home as a tax write off. And to boot you are saving $260.00 per month. If you need to raise the rent a bit i would recommend that you do it by looking into other rooms for rent in the area before you price yourself out of a roommate. Rental income is all part of the game. To build equity in the home for the future sale of that home or rental property. ( check Craigslist.com for the rooms for rent in your area)
Figuring Roomate rental amount to charge..?
By charging 1/2 your expenses, you will take in about $208 a month. CHEAP!, a little over $50 a week! You can still set rules about company allowed in the house and overnight guests (NO!). Unlike renting another house, you have to be extra careful of who you allow in your home. A friend of mine did this and the man started receiving drug deliveries at the back door. His parents wanted him out of their house, paid the rent just to get him out of their hair. My friend ended up escorting him out of the house at gunpoint. Not a pretty picture. I would say you could charge more than the $50 a week, say $75 to give you a cushion when your heat and light bills go up due to the extra occupant. Make sure you have a written agreement, too. Good luck, I think it's a good thing to do!
Should my roommate's boyfriend be charged for bills/ rent?
It would depend on how long he has been around... if he has been around more than a month... I think you should talk to her about her boyfriend and you could give her several options such as he moves out, he pays, she pays his way... it doesn't matter which pays but it is only fair that all adults are paying.. neither you guys or her should be taken for a free ride. Explain to her that if you brought a girlfriend into the picture she would have to pay her way or you'd pay it for her. It is another head in the house. He eats, showers, does laundry... you could also set him up on a daily basis incase he's not there as much. If he was any kind of man anyway he would be offering something so that it didn't appear that he was taking advantage of all of you. Just try not to sound like you are attacking him or her when you talk to them.