Moving day doesn’t always fall on the last day of the month, and if this applies to you, the situation may require you to pay prorated rent. But what is prorated rent, and how do you calculate the amount you’ll need to pay? Here, we’ll define prorated rent, how it works, and how to calculate prorated rent when moving out mid-month.
What is prorated rent?
Prorated rent allows a renter to pay for a partial month that doesn’t fit into a regular billing cycle. Most landlords begin rent cycles at the beginning of each month, but sometimes renters aren’t able to move out exactly on the last day of the month. Occasionally, new leases begin mid-month, or you’re looking for a place on really short notice. It’s common for students to schedule move-out dates that coincide with the beginning of a school year or a new job. Under any of these circumstances, among others, most people want to have their rent prorated.
Simply put, prorated rent refers to rent that’s proportionate to the days a unit is occupied.
How prorated rent works
If a renter occupies a unit for 15 days in January, with prorated rent, they only pay for 15 days that month. Occasionally, a landlord may request that a renter move out prior to the end of the month so new tenants can move in, or a renter may need to remain in the unit an additional week into the month following the end of a lease. However, as mentioned above, often it’s the renter who needs the special early move-out date. While most landlords are willing — even enthusiastic — to prorate rent when a renter is moving in mid-month, some may not be as excited to do it for a move-out. The best thing to do to avoid issues with this is, of course, to check with the landlord before moving in or just ahead of time, and get things in writing.
Who qualifies for prorated rent?
Not all property owners and managers offer prorated rent to renters. Your lease agreement may outline whether prorated rent is available, as well as what prorated calculator rent is used to come up with an accurate cost. It’s always good (when possible) to discuss prorating policies prior to signing a lease. If your lease agreement doesn’t specify, be polite and submit your request for prorated rent in writing.
When to ask for prorated rent
In most places, prorating rent isn’t actually required by law. If you’re planning to move in or out of your rental after or before the first day of the month, the landlord may offer prorated rent for those days. You’ll want to pay attention to detail, and/or do some research, as there could be details in your lease agreement regarding circumstances under which prorated rent is and isn’t applied. There may even be such laws in your area. If neither of those is the case, you can ask for a prorated price.
When asking for prorated pricing, you should always consider what’s fair for everyone. If your lease allows you to remain in your place until the month is over and you want to vacate early, if you come to this decision on short notice, it might be best to pay for the full month. Then again, if you’ve given plenty of notice and the landlord is able to find new renters to move in early, it’s fair to have your rent prorated for the partial month. Chances are high those new tenants will be paying a prorated price for the additional days.
While there aren’t general renter’s rights that pertain to prorated rent, local or state laws could cover specific prorated rent circumstances.
How to ask for prorated rent
Remember, requesting a prorated rate doesn’t guarantee you’ll get it. If it isn’t covered in your lease or by local laws, prorating rent happens at a landlord’s discretion. This is why it’s always good (when possible) to have a conversation about prorating policies prior to signing a lease. If you are going to request prorated rent, be polite and submit your request in writing.
Calculating your prorated rent
In order to determine how to calculate prorated rent, a property owner can assess the daily cost of the unit based on the monthly rent fee. For example, if an apartment costs $1,000 per month, this works out to $12,000 per year. Dividing that number by 365 (the number of days in the year) produces a daily rate of $32.88. If you’re trying to figure out the prorated rent, you could then multiply the daily rate by the number of days in the month that you’ll occupy the unit.
Not all property owners use this number of days for the prorated rent moving out calculator. Some use the number of days in the current month or average out the number of days in a month. Still, others use the number of days in a banker’s month to calculate prorated rent. A prorated rent calculator can help determine what the renter might owe for the partial month.
You can calculate your rent per day using any of these:
- Days in the current month
- Days in a banker’s month
- Days in an average month
- Days in a year
Here are examples using $1,200 as the number for monthly rent:
If you calculate daily rent using August as the current month, you’ll divide $1,200 by 31, which comes to $38.70 per day.
If you calculate using the average month method, you’ll divide $1,200 by 30.42, which comes to $39.44 per day.
If you calculate daily rent using a banker’s month, you’ll divide $1,200 by 30, resulting in a nice, round $40 per day.
If you’re using the number of days in a year (the most precise calculation), you’ll first multiply $1,200 x 12. This figure — $14,400 — represents your yearly rent, which must then be divided by 365, or the number of days in the average year. That’s $14,400/365, which is $39.45.
Once you have your daily rent calculated, simply multiply it by how many days you’re occupying the rental to get your prorated price for the month.
Life doesn’t always fit into billing cycles, and prorated rent can save significant money for renters. With a complete understanding of prorated rent and how to calculate your costs, you can look into whether your unit qualifies should the need arise to move out before the last day of the month.
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