Paying £1650 in rent to live alone - Am I mad?

[SaharaLeila]

Hi all, long-term user here but serial namechanger as I am terrified of people recognizing me 

I have been living with flatmates in Central London for the last 8 years. I am now 29 yo and I am so sick of it. I crave my own space, I hate being disturbed by my flatmates' noise and I hate worrying about disturbing them with my own. I need to move out. Unfortunately I am not in the position to buy at the moment, so renting it is.

I have found the perfect little apartment, 15 mins by bus from my office. It is a one bedroom flat with huge windows and a small private backyard. It looks absolutely lovely and I know I would just love living there.

The only problem is that rent is £1650 a month 

I think I could technically afford it, but it feels like an obscene amount of money to pay in rent? Am I mad for even considering it? Would you pay that amount of money in rent just for the sake of living on your own?

If you like it and can afford it, why not?

Obviously I'll point out that in other parts of the UK you could have a mansion for that

That is really hard to answer because it's all relative. I wouldn't pay that amount because it's more than my monthly wage so I couldn't. If I could afford it and either could afford to save on top or didn't need or want to save on top I would live there.

I hated living in flat shares and I would pay more to have my own space.

I hated living in flat shares and I would pay more to have my own space.

Nerr that is exactly the way I feel, I HATE LIVING IN FLAT SHARES ugh!

If you earn £2k per month then yes, it's a lot but if you earn £4k then it's doable.

How much do you earn? Won't it stop you from saving up to buy?

Hollow

I can't buy in London because my career is really mobile and I am likely to move to another country with work within the next couple of years. I am also not from the UK, so I have no family ties here and I am not sure I want to commit to owning a place in a country where I might never live again.

I earn in the region of £4k/month after taxes.

If you’re not in a position to buy at the moment, does that mean it’s something you’re working towards?
If you are saving towards buying then that’s the crux of it - can you rent this place and still save towards buying? Remember to take all the bills into account.
I’d think very carefully - renting (especially in a high cost area) can be a real trap.

Yes, it will be wonderful. You can sit out on your patio like I'm doing at the moment drinking coffee in utter peace.

If you're the type to be out every single night then maybe it's not worth it and you'd rather spend your cash on that. But if you're the box set in pj's while drinking tea type then of course you want a peaceful life.

My friend has her own flat, I feel like the neighbours are part of her flat share the noise is so intrusive!!!

Could you find a studio flat?

Flat and house shares are my idea of hell. I’d move.

I would.

Its no diff than someone on 35k paying £825.

I definitely would. Not living in house shares is priceless. Yes, it's more expensive, but coming home every night to your own place will be worth it. I did exactly that some years ago and scan honestly say it was worth every penny.

I think you’re paying more for outside space. That said, I paid £1200 for a teeny London flat 15 years ago in zone 2, so your rent seems reasonable . My flat had high ceilings, and they did a built in loft bed with a closet underneath because the bedroom wouldn’t have been big enough to fit a double bed and a wardrobe. It was that teeny.

Valasca the flat is not huge, it is around 400 sqft with a small bedroom and a nice living/ dining area with open kitchen. I don't mind that it is tiny though, as it looks so lovely 

You'll still have 2.4k a month left over and that's more than many families of 4 live off before rent/mortgage.

You don't sound like you have car costs. Bills should be lower than average as some person and also you'll get single occupancy reduction on council tax.

Yes it's a lot in actual amount but relative to income (as long as you aren't wanting to mad save for something) it's perfectly affordable and if it will make you happy then I'd say go for it!

I think you’ll be really happy but after a few months you’ll start to notice how much it’s costing. Is the short commute important to you? Where I live (zone 2) you could get a nice 1 bed Victorian conversion for £1250

I’d move a bit further out to pay less but still have my own space- plenty of decent places in zone 2/3/4

If you earn 4k after tax I would say it's reasonable. If you can afford it, do it!

It's a lot of money but you can afford it and there's no point living life unhappily with flatmates for the sake of it. If you love the flat and would like living alone then it's absolutely worth it

In your circumstances, I would pay that rent.

You will still have as much disposable income as many have in their total take-home, you are young, no dependents, and might as well enjoy London while you are here. Not trekking out to the suburbs on Southern Rail!

Do try to save some money every month in a higher interest Regular Saver or something so that you are building towards buying somewhere at some stage. Set up a direct debit into a savings account for the day your salary arrives.

If it stretches you financially, walk or cycle instead of paying for travel: make the best of the short distances.

Personally, I'd choose to live further out in order to have more space/rooms but I certainly wouldn't think anyone was silly to pay that kind of portion of their earnings to live in a lovely, though small flat close to their work, as long as they were happy and comfortable there. I'd certainly always prefer that over a flat share, especially if you're not interested in saving up to buy somewhere soon because your career is quite mobile.

With your salary theres no way id still flat share at 29. Go for it!

In your position a few years ago I moved out of London and commuted in instead. Paid £900 pm for a house with two double bedrooms, garden & garage.

2 mins walk to the station and then 39 mins train journey to Waterloo.

Personally I'd always choose that option BUT if you hate the idea of travelling in then I would pay the £1650 to live alone.

Do it. I loved living alone and you can afford it. Being so close to the office is also a blessing in London and not to be sniffed at. Yes it’s a stupid amount of rent, but it’s London, all our rent’s are stupid! At least this way you can revel in your own space - walk around naked, take baths at weird times of the day, leave your underwear in the middle of the living room for day BECAUSE THERES NOONE ELSE TO GET ANNOYED!

Go for it, if you find it’s not working out you can always move again.

The only problem is that rent is £1650 a month

I think I could technically afford it, but it feels like an obscene amount of money to pay in rent?

I agree that it's an obscene amount in rent, but equally amazed that someone earning 70k a year (4k a month after tax) would be living in a flat share (if by flatshare you mean sharing with multiple people rather than sharing a flat with a friend as joint tenants)