Shared house or own place?

Slime101 · 15 Jan 2007 at 17:48

I'm starting a new job in feb (2ish weeks time) in a strange area and need to relocate there first.

Thing is i would like my own place but prices are high and i'm not convinced that after rent, council tax, food, bills, and travel costs etc i will actually be able to afford it despite starting on a fairly good salary.

So should i look into a rented shared house, as there is a lady at work with a spare room looking for someone (yes shes fit before anyone asks but this is irrelevant!) or should i risk it for a biscuit and get my own place?

Slime101 · 15 Jan 2007 at 17:52

This is the problem, renting might well tip the scales and be more than i earn!

By shared house i mean shared rented place, not shared ownership. I'm not even considering buying at this point in time.

Slime101 · 15 Jan 2007 at 18:08

dirtydog said:
Only you can answer it You know your income and the cost of housing in the area you are moving to - plus you know whether you could stand to share or not. I wouldn't like to share personally.

Housing is about £575+tax+bills+food etc etc for my own place, or just £280+bills sharing, its a massive difference.

As for standing it, i guess i might have to!

Slime101 · 15 Jan 2007 at 18:26

dirtydog said:
£575 isn't too bad. Have you considered what it will be like sharing?

Thats ok until you add on the rest:

575 Rent
100 Council tax
25 Water
25 Elec
25 Gas
120 Food
10 Contents insurance

Thats just basics, Then add other things like:

30 Mobile
15 Internet
10 Phone line (for above)
30 car insurance (360/yr)
18 car tax (215/yr)
3.75 car mot (45/yr)
21 car service (250/yr)
100 fuel

£1090/month - without any leeway for extra fuel, going out, buying clothes (i dont buy many but will have to wear suit/shirts now!) etc. etc. and it doesnt leave much!

Slime101 · 15 Jan 2007 at 18:48

masslac said:
Share, then sign up for the local housing association.

I won't be eligable for that, i earn too much (which sounds daft condsidering the above!)

Slime101 · 15 Jan 2007 at 19:06

dirtydog said:
Living is expensive Unless you earn good money you can't expect to have your own place, run a car etc. and have loads left over as disposable income. Not if you live on your own.

I know its expensive, but when i was with my ex (and 2 kids) we still seemed better off, i guess it more of 2 incomes although smaller made it easier on the bank balance.

I dont consider my salary to be bad, but when single it doesnt go far! Guess i might have to consider sharing more than i wanted to, at least for a bit!

Slime101 · 15 Jan 2007 at 19:35

dirtydog said:
Because getting involved with a girl at work, who you also rely on for the roof over your head is such a good idea

Indeed, sh@gging my collegues when new at the place isnt high on my list of ways to impress the boss!

Matt-Page - Living on my own wouldnt be a dump, far from it as its a nice place but struggling with money from month to month with nout to spare isnt exactly gonna make it a smooth transition from my old life to my new life!

Slime101 · 15 Jan 2007 at 20:25

Thanks for the sensible replies.

Its a shame everything comes down to "is she fit" "i'd hit it" and "pix please" type answers for a lot of you, i'm sure you are capable of more intelligent answers than that, and for the record i'm straight but have no intention of jumping her bones or shaking her tree!

Slime101 · 15 Jan 2007 at 20:30

sam83uk said:
the fact that shes fit answers it tbh

Do you attempt to mount and hump every "fit" girl/lady/woman/object you see?? I know i dont, i have self control, respect and a brain!

Slime101 · 15 Jan 2007 at 22:40

HangTime said:
Well the first question I would ask is:

Do you have any experience of sharing? (excluding family members/partners, obviously)?

If you have, then you've probably got a reasonable idea of how you coped living with relative strangers. Obviously it does depend a lot on the people involved but some people just don't like living around people they have no ties to, whereas others can't get enough of it. Can you handle dirty dishes and underwear lying around, music blaring at all hours, people not pulling their weight and leaving the front door wide open? Would living alone in a small flat leave you feeling lonely or craving people to do things with?

Nope, generally speaking i dont "do" strangers! It would drive me insane especially if they were drunk and noisey as its a pet hate of mine, however tight finances might force me into that route, and it may not be *that* bad afterall!