Renting your home can be horrible as you’re constantly paying money every month just for the privilege of living with a roof over your head. It’s made even worse when you consider that you’re basically paying for someone else’s mortgage. Nevertheless, there are ideas and ways in which you can save money when renting, and here are three of the best:
Look After the Property
The number one money-saving tip is to look after the property you’re renting. Just because you don’t own it doesn’t mean you shouldn’t take care of it. If anything, it gives you an even bigger incentive to be careful and look after everything. If your home gets damaged or ends up in a worse state than it was when you rented it, the landlord can charge you for all of this. They can use your security deposit to pay for any cleaning or repair costs, and they can still slap some extra charges on if more work is required.
So, to save money, all you have to do is keep the rental property in excellent condition. Don’t give the landlord an excuse to charge extra; keep it clean, tidy, and in the same condition as when you moved in. Always take photos when moving in so you can compare things when you move out!
Compare Storage vs. Rental Costs
Many of you will have a lot of stuff that needs to come with you to your rental property. As a result, you may have to look at quite large places to rent with enough storage for all your belongings. However, you can save money by comparing the cost of rent against the cost of storage units. It’s easy to find storage fast nowadays, and it can sometimes be cheaper to downsize and rent a small apartment but also pay for storage every month.
It’s your job to compare the costs to see if it is cheaper for you to just rent a large apartment or pay for a small one and a storage unit. Prices vary depending on where you’re located, but it can really help you save money by figuring out which option is the cheaper of the two.
Cut Down on Energy Costs
Rent is one thing, but paying for your energy bill is another. The two expenses combined can be too much for a lot of renters. As a result, you can reduce one by being more energy-conscious. Instead of using the energy-sapping lights in your house/flat, switch to better bulbs or use lamps that consume less electricity.
Turn things off when they’re not being used and try to wrap up warm when it gets cold, so you don’t need to keep turning the heating on. There are loads of ways to use less energy in your home, helping you cut your energy bills every month – making it easier to save money and handle rental payments.
The problem with renting is that you have no control over the actual rental price. However, with these three tips, you can save money by ensuring you don’t have loads of other costs to worry about.
Many thanks to Pavel Danilyuk for the use of his photo
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Thanks for the great tips.
If you are renting a house, there may be an option to negotiate services in exchange for lowering your rent. For example, the landlord may need help with mowing the lawn and trimming bushes.
An important tip that you provided is that you should always take pictures of the property. If you see even minor damage, document it and make sure there are date stamps.
You are most certainly correct, Laura! Several places we have rented the landlords were more than happy to reduce our rent for the any repairs that we made or for keeping the landscaping up. My husband is VERY particular about how his yard looks and takes great pride in it – even if we are renting – so I think the landlords always get a better deal LOL!