Tips For Dividing The Costs Of An Apartment Fairly With Your Roommate

Stepping out on your own by renting an apartment is a great move for a young adult, but it can also be financially difficult unless you find a roommate to share an apartment with. If this sounds like a good idea to you, it will be important for you to create a roommate agreement you must both follow, and you will need to look for an apartment that meets your needs. Once you find one, you may wonder how to split the costs of the apartment in a way that is completely fair, and here are some tips to help you determine how you should do this.

Calculate rent per person by size

One of the best ways to divide the costs of an apartment fairly is by basing each person's costs by size. This will give each person a fair rate to pay based on the amount of space each person has in his or her bedroom. To use this method, you will need to know the square footage of each bedroom and of the entire apartment. Here are the steps to follow to use this method:

1. Divide the rent by the total square footage of the apartment – This will give you a price per square foot. If your apartment is 800 square feet and costs $1,000 per month, the price per square foot will be $1.25.
2. Multiply the price per square foot by the square footage of each bedroom – This will give you a rate per each room. If one room is 250 square feet and the other is 200 square feet, the larger room would be $312.50 and the smaller room $250.
3. Subtract these amounts by the rent and split the remainder in half – If you add these up, you will get $562.50. You must subtract this from $1,000 to get $437.50 and this is divided in half, which is $218.75.
4. Add up the costs – To finish, you would add the $218.50 to each room, so the person with the larger room would pay $531.25, and the person with the smaller room would pay $468.75.

Factor in any amenities

It's also important to factor in any extra amenities only one of the roommates will receive from the deal. If for example, one person gets to park in a garage and the other doesn't, you can reduce one person's rent and increase the other person's rent by a fair amount.

This is one of the best ways to ensure that apartment rental is divided fairly between roommates. If you and a friend are ready to rent an apartment and have agreed on how to split things, look for an apartment like University Manor Apartments for rent.