Expense: Call the local utility company and get the annual utility cost for the house over the last two years.
Phones, Internet and Cable: Personally, I would keep your expenses down to a minimum. If you absolutely need Internet, shop around for the best price. There are some good deals out there if you look. Most people have mobile phones. If you need a land-line to save on costs, use either an internet phone, (VOIP phone) such as Vonage or Skype. If your tenants want to get a phone line in their own name, that is fine, but adding a “House Phone” to the equation can complicate things real quick. Trust me, it isn’t worth it. Keep it simple and stay out of financial agreements with your tenants. Remember, the more costly the place, the less attractive it will be to renters.
Figure out the monthly cost to run the place. Divide that number by the number of rooms less one room (your room). You will need to finesse the numbers here a little to have them make sense, but the idea is to the get your rent as close to zero while keeping the other rooms in check with other available rooms. I have a spreadsheet that can help you with this.
Once you find a place you really like, and the numbers look attractive, we write an offer.
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