While many tertiary students find that staying away from home sounds like sweet freedom but what they didn’t know is that the rental cost could add on the burden to their parents and themselves unknowingly. Do you know that students’ biggest expense after college will be a rental fee? There are statistics from the New Strait Times where students spend more than 30% of monthly expenses on rental fees. While living on your own sounds ‘adulting’ but when money seems tight, you might want to avoid expensive condominiums in Kuala Lumpur or high-end area. Now that many students these days are tied with student loans and other expenditures, you wouldn’t want to dig deeper into the wallet to meet month ends. Here’s how you can save up for your rental.
1. Bargaining
Most regards this act is seemingly very ‘auntie-ish’ but you will be surprised that how much it helped to reduce your expenses. There is no harm to ask for a lower rental fee as long as you don’t ask for a huge reduction. What worst that can happen is the landlord saying ‘No’. But once you have viewed the place, observe the unattractive aspects of the property that can be useful as your bullet during negotiations. For example, the cracked walls, noise, apartment’s size, cleanliness. However, be alert to anything that is wrong with the place as it is not worth to pay an expensive rental fee if you notice the condition is unpleasant.
2. Unfurnished or semi-furnished property
You could consider renting a property that is either unfurnished or semi-furnished property as we all know that property doesn’t come cheap and an unfurnished property will save you a lot of money on a rental. However, if you have prioritized the essential furnishings like wardrobes and beds, students have the basic needs. Besides, students can do up some DIY projects during their leisure time, they can use their DIY project to decorate the house with a shoestring budget. Here’s a tip when looking for a piece of furniture, find furniture that maximizes space like drawers under the bed or anything that has a dual function.
3. The more the merrier
When we mean the more the merrier, we are referring to the number of occupants in the house. It is the most common way for students to save money on rent. Usually, an apartment can accommodate four to five students. A master bedroom can be shared with two people. You can think what’s the maximum number of occupants can stay in the property comfortably. Not only it helps to split the rental fee with the lesser burden, but it also helps to cut down utility bills and sharing internet bills. Make sure that you appoint a finance captain to track expenses and make sure everyone pays up on time and accordingly.
4. Stay farther away from the university
If the price is not pleasing to your pocket, perhaps you should consider staying far away from college. It can be expensive for students to live in an area that is only a stone throw away from the university due to the short distance. However, if you chose to move 10 to 20 minutes away from downtown or from college, students will be able to save a significant amount of cash. But living far away from college could be dreadful for a non-morning person to wake up earlier than usual. If your time management is well planned, you don’t have to worry about wasting time commuting and you can even save up a few hundreds of Ringgits per month.
5. Energy bills saving
It is understood that monthly rental fee is fixed but students can always be flexible with power usage and monitor how much money you spend on energy. Learn and understand energy saving by reducing the usage of energy-hungry appliances like the air conditioner and television. Meanwhile, the basic habit practice of turn off switches when you are not using the appliances. Paying your bills separately is usually more economical, especially during term breaks where most of the time you will be away from your college. Check here on how to save your energy bills.
Living your own sounds enjoyable but it could be expensive if you do not watch and track your expenditure. Review your monthly budget before making financial commitment and take time to view few properties. Cut unnecessary cost and look around for better options like moving to a smaller place or cut down your daily expenses. You will be surprised how much money you have saved.
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