Moving In The Next Month

Posted on: November 3, 2008 by Matt

My girlfriend and I have been talking about and looking into moving out of our current apartments and into a house that we can share for the past couple of months. Our current living situation is kind of unique as we have two separate apartments but have them connected. We came up with this arrangement as I was moving back to Vermont from Colorado, needed a place to stay and the apartment next to my girlfriend opened up just prior to my move. The apartments were separated by a thin wall where a door used to be – the construction of the building is not very good. We simply took down the wall between the two apartments (with landlord approval) and used the space as one big apartment.

The setup works well as we all benefit from having more space, rooms and bathrooms that we can use. However it really does not make sense financially. Since we technically have two physical / mailing addresses we end up having to pay:

Two Rents: We each pay rent for our own apartment. Paying rent for both apartments equates to a mortgage payment for a pretty nice house in this area. We do get free heat, water and trash removal but the place really is not worth what we pay.
Two Electric Bills: This actually works out in my favor as we do not use as much power in my apartment (we also spend less time there).
Two Cable Bills: Two addresses equals two cable bills as well.

After we move our new situation will allow us to consolidate a bunch of services as well as save us some money. Our new ‘apartment’ will be a duplex and will:

Cost less in rent: Our new rent will be about what one rent payment currently is. We will have to pay for our own heat though. We are estimating that even with having to buy heating oil we will still be well under paying both of our current rents.
Consolidate bills: Electric and cable will be together now. This should save us $50 per month or so in just cable bills.
Have more space: We will have a more open floor plan and more space in general for everyone.
Have a washing machine and dryer: We currently have to go to the laundromat. With two adults and two kids the costs add up really quickly.
Not have steep stairs: Our current apartment(s) are on the second floor and we have to walk up some really steep stairs.
Have a little outside space: There is a small lawn that the kids can play on. Much better than the street outside here.

After running an estimate of the numbers my girlfriend and I came to the conclusion that at a minimum we will save $100 per month each! So we will be saving money and improving our standard of living in several areas. Needless to say we are both really excited about moving and can not wait to get started!

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