Household Bills
If you are thinking of setting up
your own home, you need to know about bills. Listed below are the
main bills you have to deal with when running a home & how much
you can expect to pay.
The main priority bills are:
- Rent
- Water Charge
- Council Tax
- Gas & Electricity
- TV Licence
These are unavoidable. Other bills you might choose to pay for
include telephone, insurance, TV subscription (e.g. Sky) and
internet.
How much
How much varies dependent on property size, family size and
lifestyle. Here are some pointers as to what to expect.
Typical weekly amounts:
| Property |
Studio Flat |
One Bed Flat |
2 Bed House |
3 Bed House |
| Rent |
£49.70 |
£56.30 |
£65.40 |
£71.00 |
| Water Charge |
£5.40 |
£6.30 |
£6.30 |
£7.00 |
Council Tax
Most of the Council properties are in band A. The full Band A
council tax for 2010-11 in Rochdale is £988.24 (weekly £19.00)
If you live alone, you may be entitled to 25% single person
discount. More
information
Housing benefit and council tax benefit
The water charge has to be paid in full whatever your income,
but you may be entitled to housing & council tax benefit.
You can check if you might be entitled by using the
benefit
checker
Gas & Electricity
This is probably the bill that varies the most. As well as
family size, lifestyle and time of year, it also varies according
to usage, supplier, tariff and method of payment. Below are some
guideline amounts. Consumer Focus is a
government funded consumer organisation. It collects figures on gas
& electricity usage. Based on its figures for usage and on the
latest tariffs (April 2010) according to Uswitch, typical amounts
would be:
| |
Usage as defined by Consumer Focus |
Kilowatt Hours (yearly) |
Average Annual Bill |
| Gas |
Low |
10,000 |
£400 |
| Medium |
20,500 |
£730 |
| High |
28,000 |
£970 |
| Electricity |
Low |
1,650 |
£210 |
| Medium |
3,300 |
£400 |
| High |
4,950 |
£600 |
| Economy 7 Electric (assumes 55% night
time usage) |
Low |
3,300 |
£350 |
| Medium |
6,600 |
£650 |
| High |
9,900 |
£975 |
How much per week? You could divide by 52, but that’s only an
average figure – in winter it would be much higher, in summer
lower. Also, the supplier you use and the way you pay can alter the
cost. See – Ways To Pay
TV Licence
A full colour TV licence costs £145.50 for the year. Not having
a TV licence can cost £145.50 plus £1,000.
Weekly, it works out at £5.60 per week for 6 months then £5.60
per fortnight for the remaining 6 months.