You will usually be responsible for charges separate to your rent such as gas, electricity, water and other bills. You may be able to secure an all-inclusive rental deal with your landlord, but this is not common. 

You will be responsible for paying for your usage and it is important that when you move into a property that you make a note of the meter readings to ensure that you are only billed from your date of occupancy.   

All properties will have an electricity meter and most will have a gas meter. Newer properties will typically have a water meter, but older properties may not. If a water meter is not present, you will be responsible for paying water rates, which is an estimate of the water you’re likely to use, based on the size of your house. 

It will also be important for you to find out the current suppliers to your property. Your landlord should have details of the water, electricity and gas suppliers that previous tenants used, and you will have to contact these companies directly to set up payment methods for your bills throughout the year. Most bills come in once a month or every three months. Make sure you are not paying for any costs accrued from the previous tenants. 

Council tax is collected by the local council to fund local services such as education, social services and cultural services. When you move into your house, you will probably receive a notification from the council about the amount of tax for the property. The amount payable depends on your local authority and the band your property is in, normally the larger the property, the higher the council tax. 

To calculate and pay your council tax online, please see below. Letting agents and landlords may be able to provide you with the council tax band to calculate the cost. 

The tax is usually payable in 10 monthly instalments starting in April each year. If you are a sole occupant of a property you will be eligible for a single occupancy discount. 

You will need to purchase a TV license if you want to watch or record any TV programmes, irrespective of the device you are using. TV Licensing officers visit unlicensed properties to check if a television, laptop or iPad is being used. 

Information on obtaining a TV Licence is linked below. 

There are three main types of home insurance policies: building, contents and combined building and contents cover. Buildings cover protects the structure, the fixtures and fittings in your home, while contents insurance covers your belongings. 

If you rent a house, building insurance will be covered by the owner of the house. If you wish to purchase insurance for the contents of your house, you can find competitive rates on websites linked below.