I have recently accepted a job with one of the top consultants and will be moving to London from university in september. Having lived as a student for so many years, with the cost of rent pretty much out of my control, I have little idea how much I can afford to spend when I start receiving a salary. Should I work on a fraction of net or gross pay and, if so, roughly what fraction? Or should I estimate all other expenses and what is left can go on rent? Any advice would be much appreciated.Thanks

You have internet access, so why not look up how much it costs to rent a place in London on the estate agent websites? Scan the market and decide how much you want to spend.I'd allow £750 per month min.

Are you kidding me? You got a job with one of the top consulting firms, but you can't do a little research and come up with a budget?Sigh... well, for what it's worth the general rule is not to spend more than a third of your take-home on your rent. In London, that's virtually impossible unless you are on 65k+, so do what most new grads do and share a flat.

Thanks for the info. And yes, you are right, I could have done the research myself but considered it a more efficient use of time to ask those who could give me a straight answer. Apologies if this made you crabbit.

Obviously also depends on location... my rough estimates based on renting and look with other professionals:Nice area N of river - 650-800Nice area S of river - 600-700Suburbs a little further out - 500-600of course there can be extra bills to pay on top

Don't rule out living in a caravan - this is the abode of choice for most people from Kent.

D - what are your figures for? A Room?300 (bargain basement) - 500 / 550 should get you a roomFrom 600/650 upwards you could get a 1 bed flat in S London. At 1000 you will have a considerable choice of flats and areas.

Well my figures are probably a little high but something where you will be able to share a nice house/flat to suit a consultant life!

Hardly matters when you are away all week.From my point of view Feltham would be the ideal location but then sense prevails...

before you shell out on a nice comfy flat make sure you will be based in London

If you go with a flatshare make sure you can trust the other people - it's tempting to go for something cheap if you're going to be working away from home most of the time, but it's a false economy if your flatmates break into your room, sell your stuff for drug money, and generally resent you for being Mr/Ms Bigshot professional while they're working in admin for the council. Therefore, avoid most places under £150/week.Try to rent with other professionals - your workplace may be able to put you in touch with people who are joining at the same time as you who may be looking for accommodation as well. If you share with two other people, you should be able to get something reasonable for £200/week each.Otherwise, get your own place and move in with flatmates once you've met some people who you get on with and can trust. £250/week will get you a clean 1-bedroom or studio flat in a safe area.

Yes, because if your flat can't afford (or don't wish) to pay an excessive amount of rent then they must be criminals!More than £150 a week and you may as well start looking for your own place.As a graduate you will probably clear what, £1500 a month - paying no more than 30% is a reasonable guide so I would look for something around £500-550 a month, at which level you should be alright.When I used to rent my spare room I only charged £300 all in (and am not a criminal!) because it felt a bit wrong somehow having someone pay more than 50% of the mortgage.