Expenses College Students Need to Consider Before Renting Their First Apartment

College is a very expensive investment that many young people make every year. Between the long school hours and the lack of time to spend earning money, college students often struggle to make ends meet financially. A common struggle for college students is finding enough money to pay their bills. Many college students will find that living off campus will help them save money, but many more will find that living off campus is much more expensive than they originally has anticipated.

Renting an apartment comes with a lot more expenses than just rent. There are a lot of monetary factors that college students need to consider before renting their first apartment. Additionally, there are a lot of things that college students can do in order to save money on their new apartment. College students can follow this advice to not only cover the expenses of living off campus, but also to have more money each month. Here are some expenses college students need to consider before renting their first apartment.

Utilities

Utilities can become a very expensive part of living off campus for college students. Many apartments will not include utilities in the cost of rent and utilities can include a lot of expenses, from heating and cooling to water and trash costs. College students can do a lot lower the costs of these utilities. For example, college students can get cheaper rates from Direct Energy, implement measures to save energy and cut back on their water usage. These little changes can make a big difference in the amount that college students need to pay for utilities each month.

Entertainment

Entertainment is an expense that most college students do not factor into their monthly expenses, but it can become a big expense for college students. Entertainment includes cable TV services, eating out at restaurants and even driving to college campus events. College students can best plan for these expenses by giving themselves a monthly entertainment budget and not allowing themselves to spend more than that amount each month.

Food

College students who are living on campus usually have a meal plan at the dinning center near their dorm. However, when a college student moves off campus into an apartment, they are now responsible for paying for their own groceries. This is a difficult expense to plan for, but every college student can expect to pay around $100 a month in groceries, depending on how much they eat out. Additionally, the time commitment of making meals should also be considered.

Commuting

Lucky college students might be able to find apartments that are within walking distance of their college, but most college students will not be so lucky. College student should try to estimate how much they will be spending in commuting costs each month and factor that into the rest of their living expenses. College students can lower these costs by carpooling or taking public transportation.

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