For UK households living in a rented appartment, their monthly rent payments often make up the biggest chunk of their budget, frequently exceeding spendings on food, electricity or heating combined. Accordingly, increases in rent will inevitably impact your finances as well as your ability to pay off existing debt. Unfortunately, over the past few years, affordable housing no longer seems to be a priority on the political agenda, regardless of whether you intend to buy property of your own or rent an apartment as part of a social housing plan. This has created serious problems for thousands of people in the country. Still, it may only be the beginning and, according to Ian Hembrow, a senior consultant with the Bridge Group, “no amount of anger or protest will change that.” If you depend on affordable housing solutions, you will therefore need to take a look at viable solutions and alternatives.
Sensible suggestions
If you’re looking to rent a cheap appartment, there is a handful of ideas you can try out to improve your current financial situation. Writing for website How Stuff Works, Matt Sailor has a few recommendations:
Look in Other Neighbourhoods/Cities:
Humans are creatures of habit. In some cases, this is sensible and rational. In other cases, it can lead to serious problems. Some areas of your current hometown may obviously be cheaper than others, so moving to a more affordable neighbourhood can save you a lot of cash. You may also want to check if moving to a neighbouring town and commuting to work is an option for you. Time-wise, this can be straining but financially, it may be worth it.
Use Networking:
One of the main strengths of Facebook, Twitter and other social networks is their power to establish real-time connections between thousands of people. Ask your contacts if they know about cheap places to rent – you may be surprised about their readiness to help and the amount of useful offers you may get.
Find a Roommate You Can Trust:
Finding a room mate is no longer just for students. More and more 30+ or 40+ households in the UK long for the family-feel and social contact ‘pooling models’ provide. Needless to say, it pays off, too.
Use a Referral Service or Broker:
Sometimes, it can make sense to invest a little to save money in the end. Specialist referral services aren’t always the answer to all of your housing needs. But in some cases, they really do have better offers than you’d find by checking your local newspapers. If you can afford them, they may definitely be worth a try.
Negotiate with the Landlord:
You may be surprised to find that landlords are humans, too – and that your rent may be open to negotiation. If you’re living in a fairly unattractive neighbourhood, you can, for example, argue that your rent should go down to reflect the overall rent level in the area. If you’ve already lived in an appartment for a long time and never missed a rent payment, you can also suggest a reduction as a bonus for your long-term loyalty. In any case, it can’t hurt to ask.
Even more sensible suggestions
Next to these steps, which you can take yourself, there are also a variety of government-sponsored housing schemes designed to assist you buying property without building up dangerously high levels of debt. Here’s a quick overview of the options at your disposal:
Help to Buy:
A scheme supporting you in two ways: The government may be able to lend you up to 20% of the equity of your potential home under favourable conditions and guarantee part of your mortgage. This can bring down the costs of a property purchase considerably.
Right to Buy:
If you’re living in a council home or an apartment of one of a few select housing associations, you may qualify for this scheme, which allows you, at a price under the current maket value, to buy the apartment, so you no longer have to rent it.
HomeBuy:
A somewhat more complicated process, which can be summarised as an option of sharing property with others to bring down the costs of borrowing and buying.
FirstBuy:
Under this scheme, you will need to advance 5% of the home’s value and secure a mortgage for at least 75% of the home’s value. Provided you can manage this, the government and housebuilders may offer you an equity loan of up to 20% of the property’s value in return.
NewBuy:
Here, the government underwrites your mortgage. As a result, you can take on a larger mortgage, which means you’ll need a smaller deposit. Again, all of this can play an important part in keeping your costs down.
If you’re currently struggling with high amounts of debt, meanwhile, it may not be enough to follow these steps – in some cases, you may not even qualify for one of the aforementioned housing schemes. Which is why you may want to consider a professional debt management agency to help resolve your debt issues. For any questions, call our debt management team at 0800 157 7254 † (0161 429 3823 from a mobile† or 0800 093 5322 for existing customers†).
