With roommates, you can split rent payments and have more money for what matters most.
For some, that’s buying everything on their grocery list, saving for a downpayment, paying off student loans, sipping your way through the best Sunday brunch spots, or living in a hip neighborhood.
But as much as you like your roommates and the money they save you, you need a
better way to split rent payments because your current set-up isn’t working well.
You’re tired of nagging people for money, handling everyone’s cash payments, and occasionally paying more than your fair share.
You want a dedicated and transparent place where everyone can pool, manage, and spend rent money together. You want “my” rent money and “your” rent money to feel like “our” money.
After all, you share the remote control, driveway, grill, and groceries. Why not share where you split rent payments? The question is, where?
Have you tried Braid Money Pools? Millions of people live with housemates, and many use Braid to manage money for rent, utilities, and more. Keep reading to see how you and your roommates can use it.
Contents:
- Is it cheaper to split rent?
- How to write a roommate agreement in 2 steps
- Is there an app to help split rent payments?
- How to split rent payments with Braid Pools
- How does splitting rent work?
Is it cheaper to split rent?
More than 14 million Americans live with non-family roommates. A quick look at this Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) report might explain why. According to the BLS, home renting costs increased by 8.6% from January 2022 to January 2023.
With rent and other living expenses rising, it’s understandable why millions turn to shared living arrangements. But while sharing a house can lower rent payments significantly, group money can get messy and complicated without the right tools.
You can easily avoid money drama with two simple solutions:
- A written roommate agreement, and
- Braid Money Pools
Here’s how you can set up both.
How to write a roommate agreement in 2 steps
Your lease is in writing. But what about your roommate agreement and rent payment plan? It might seem over the top, but writing a roommate agreement can significantly reduce future conflicts and misunderstandings and simplify split rent payments. Here’s what to do.
Step 1: Decide how much money each roommate will pay each month
Factors to consider include:
- Room size
- Amenities
- Driveway space
We explore how to divide the rent between roommates fairly below. So, keep reading for several valuable tips.
Step 2: Decide how you will collect, manage, and spend rent money together
Questions to consider include:
- Who is responsible for collecting everyone’s rent money?
- How and when will you transfer rent money to each other?
- How will you ensure rent is paid on time?
- What will you do if someone cannot pay their portion of the rent or their financial situation changes?
While working through Step 2, you’ll probably discuss apps like Venmo and PayPal. But you don’t want to use either one.
Venmo and PayPal are great at sending money back and forth between friends. But there’s no way to share rent money. It still feels like “your money” and “my money.” Not “our money.”
Joint bank accounts don’t feel right, because as much as you like your roommates, you’re uncomfortable sharing bank accounts with them. Plus, if roommates come and go, you must cancel debit cards and add or remove people from your account.
On the other hand, Braid Money Pools are a more straightforward, secure way to manage split rent payments with your roommates.
It’s easy to set up a Braid Pool. Click here to learn how.
Is there an app to help split rent payments? 🏠 💸
Wherever you live and whomever you live with, Braid is an excellent fit for split rent payments.
It’s not another peer-to-peer money-transferring app like Venmo or PayPal. Braid Pools are dedicated, secure places where you can collect and manage spend rent money with roommates.
But that’s not all. You also can pay rent and utility bills directly from the pool without transferring funds to a bank account.
And in case you’re wondering, you can create multiple pools for all your shared expenses, from rent to group purchases to groceries to Uber Eats, etc.
What makes Braid a great fit for splitting rent payments? Many things! Every Braid Pool is free, collaborative, flexible, transparent, and super straightforward. Take a look:
1. Braid is free
There are no fees to set up and use Braid Pools. They’re 100% free.
Braid doesn't take a percentage of the money you collect. Keep 100% of the rent money you collect for rent.
2. Braid is collaborative
Easily manage money pools with roommates. Simply send them an invitation link to join.
Set permissions so roommates can manage shared household expenses with you.
3. Your pools are flexible
There’s no limit to how many pools you can start. Start one for every shared expense category, like rent, utilities, cable/WIFI, furniture, groceries, water, garbage, etc. They’re free!
Easily add or remove pool members if your household changes.
4. Braid Pools are transparent and secure
Everyone’s rent money collects in one shared pool.
Roommates can track contributions and payments in the app.
Everyone’s personal banking information stays private and secure.
5. Collecting and spending rent money is super straightforward
Roommates can download Braid, connect their bank accounts, and add funds to the pool for free with ACH transfers. Their banking information stays private and everyone’s rent money collects in one shared place.
Roommates can use Recurring Add $ to make automatic, monthly contributions to the pool.
Pay rent or utility bills directly with the Braid debit card. It’s free!
Transfer pool funds to a bank account whenever you need to with two convenient transfer options.
Let’s dive deeper into collecting and spending pool funds so you and your roommates can split the rent effortlessly.
How to split rent payments with Braid Pools
1. Collect everyone’s rent
Once you set up a Braid Pool, roommates can become pool members and submit rent payments right from their Braid account with free ACH transfers.
With this convenient tool, no one needs to go out of their way to withdraw cash from an ATM. Your roommates can make rent payments from their smartphones anytime and anywhere.
If you’re the one responsible for collecting everyone’s rent money, you don’t have to worry about keeping track of large amounts of cash or Venmo payments anymore. You also never need to mix it with funds in your personal bank account.
Everyone’s rent money collects in one shared pool.
Some roommates may not want to download an app or set up a Braid account. In that case, you can send them your Pool Link to collect rent money. It’s important to know that Pool Links support payments up to $500 each. Therefore, your roommates may have to make multiple payments to contribute their fair share.
When using Pool Links, they can contribute for free with a debit or via credit card for a 3% + $0.30 fee.
2. Collect everyone’s rent money on time
It isn’t just easy to collect rent money with Braid. Paying rent on time is also a breeze.
As the pool admin, encourage your roommates to set up Recurring Add $ so they automatically pay into the pool and never miss rent due dates.
3. Easily pay rent (and other shared expenses) from the pool
Once you have everyone’s contributions, you can pay rent directly with the pool’s account and routing number. Or pay utilities and other bills directly with your pool’s free digital debit card.
As pool admin, you can assign spending permissions and limits so roommates can manage payments with you.
Are you ready to split rent payments with Braid? Start a free pool here.
How does splitting rent work?
You may need to figure out the following:
- How to split rent with roommates
- How to split rent between 3 people or more, or
- How to split rent between a couple and a single
What is a fair rent split in each scenario? The truth is, there are no clear-cut rules. That’s why we’re closing this article with four suggestions. There’s a good chance you’ll find the right one for you and your roommates. Take a look!
1. Split the rent evenly
Splitting the rent evenly among your roommates is the easiest option.
Everyone splits the rent at an equal fiscal level, and this makes sense if all roommates have similar room sizes and amenities.
This method doesn't factor in individual incomes, cost of living adjustments, or variations in room size.
2. Split the rent by room size and amenities
A popular option is to split the rent by amenities or room size.
This is a wise choice if there are apparent differences between the spaces where each roommate lives and what resources they have access to.
For example, if one roommate lives in the main bedroom with an en-suite bathroom, they may pay more than a different roommate taking a smaller bedroom and sharing a bathroom down the hall.
Try Splitwise's rent split calculator to make the calculations for you.
Here’s how the calculator determines the split:
- Enter your total monthly rent and the number of bedrooms
- Enter room size and amenities
- Enter the size of the common spaces (like living room, kitchen, bathrooms, etc.)
Then, the calculator works its magic to figure out fair splits.
3. Is it fair to split rent based on income?
This rent-splitting strategy is less common but tends to work best between couples moving in together who are already sharing other expenses.
Between roommates, it may feel like a sensitive topic. Therefore, if you decide to go this route, start by figuring out how much rent each person can shoulder depending on their financial situation. For example, if one roommate takes home higher paychecks than the other, they may be willing to contribute more in rent.
4. Split the rent by responsibilities
For example, if your rent and utility are approximately the same each month, you can split the rent by offering to pay the utility bills instead.
In this circumstance, the bills for the house are evenly distributed, and everybody knows which part of the finances they're responsible for paying.
Which suggestion feels like a good fit for you and your roommates?
Happy renting!
Roommates don’t just save you money on rent. They also make a house feel more like a home with personal touches, thoughtful conversations, barista-level coffee skills, and addictive playlists.
Keep enjoying the good vibes at home without the stress of split rent payments with Braid Money Pools.
