Rent Money
Standards Assessed: 2.4, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 4.5, 5.4
Name ________________________
Algebra 1
Directions: David, George, and Ray are college students who share a
house. The rent is $450 a month which they split equally. The rent is
due on the last day of the month, no exceptions. The problem is each
of them gets paid on the first of the month thus they have to make sure
to save enough to pay the rent.
Each of the three students had a different amount of money after being paid September 1.
At the end of that day, David had $540, George had $400, and Ray had $310.
The table below shows how much they have left so far.
Date
Sept 5
Sept 10
Sept 15
Amount of Money Remaining (in Dollars)
David
George
470
365
400
330
330
295
Ray
285
260
235
Sketch and label a graph to represent this situation. Show all three students on the same
graph. (Colored pencils may help).
Who will be able to pay the rent on time and who will not? Make sure you include an
explanation with necessary computations, sketches, formulas, and notes.
On September 21st there is a big football game they would like to attend. How much, if
anything, can each one of them spend and still have enough money to pay the rent?
Suppose each of them starts October with the same amount which he started September.
Find an approximate rule for each student to determine the amount he should expect to
have on the x-th day of October assuming they keep the same spending habits.