Saving Money with a Student Budget

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As any current or former student will know, life can be very tough financially when you are attending college or university full time. Many students get part time jobs while studying but this is to help them to meet essential costs rather than giving them money to fritter away on luxuries. It is little wonder therefore that students want to try and find ways of making their money stretch as far as possible and one way in which you can do this is to make sure you draw up a student budget by the beginning of the academic year.

People often think that students have no responsibilities financially but this is not the case – students have to think more carefully about their expenditure than most otherwise they can find themselves financially high and dry in next to no time. There are many things that have to be taken into account when drawing up a budget, such as money for educational materials, money to fund the cost of travel, food costs, accommodation costs and general spending money.

When you are doing your budget, make sure you note down all of your essential costs such as rent, bills, books, travel, food and other essentials. You will then have a better idea of what you have left for spending each week or month, which can help you to avoid going over your budget. You can get more advice on effective budgeting as a student from resources such as Save the Student, which offers a host of tips to help you keep your expenditure under control.

Keeping costs down

One of the main costs that students living away from home will face is housing costs. This can take a massive chunk out of your finances, which is why you have to be extra savvy when it comes to accommodation. Taking steps to find the right accommodation can make a big difference to your outgoings, so this is something that you need to look into carefully.

One of the things you need to look for when it comes to accommodation is getting affordable rent, as this will be one of your major outgoings when it comes to your budget. However, it is not just the rent itself that you need to consider but also bill payments that you will have to make on a monthly basis, as you need to keep these down as much as possible.

One of the major utility costs that you will face is heating, so it is important to look for accommodation that comprises an energy efficient heating system to help keep costs down for everyone living in the property. You can save a lot of money by opting for housing with economical heating such as electric radiators that allow specific areas of the property to be heated rather than having to heat the whole house unnecessarily. As detailed by VeriSmart Heating, electric radiators provide the ideal solution when it comes to energy and cost efficiency, making them perfect for a house share.

You also need to take other utilities into account when choosing accommodation as a student, such as the cost of water rates and even broadband. While some landlords will include these as part of your weekly or monthly rent others will expect you to foot the bill yourself, so make sure you look at the costs involved if this is something that you are expected to cover separately from the rent.

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