A Guide to Finding A Student Property

House-hunting, like revision, should not be left to the last minute. Most first-year undergraduates apply for student halls of residence through their chosen university or college, and there is usually sufficient accommodation on campus to cater for the majority of applicants. However returning students will usually need to club together with a mate or two or more (preferably mates whose habits you think you can realistically tolerate) and go beyond the environs of the college to look for a suitable student house. (This is often referred to as ‘living out’.) Finding student accommodation that is both affordable and of a good standard is not always an entirely straightforward and hassle-free mission.

Every city with a significant student population, from Aberdeen to Exeter, has its own process and timetable for student accommodation uptake. So if you want to be assured of the best choice, get in there early because whatever house you select will be your home – your haven of rest, refuge, refreshment and even of quiet study occasionally – for at least a year. (This is why it is also important to choose your housemates with due care and consideration.)

The world of renting can be fairly daunting, especially if this is your first experience away from home, and so here is a list of basic dos and don’ts to get you started on the right track:

Do:

• Draw on the knowledge of seasoned students who know the area and are wise to all the ‘no-go’ places and favoured hotspots. They will also be able to give you an idea of budget, so you don’t get too many nasty surprises when the bills start plopping relentlessly on to the doormat.

• Speak to the current tenants of your potential student rented house if possible, to find out what it’s really like to live there.

• Get your contract (typically this will be an Assured Shorthold Tenancy agreement) checked by a trusted expert – for example the university’s accommodation officer – before you sign, and if in doubt about anything, ask. Never agree to anything if you are at all unclear about any of the terms and conditions, and certainly do not hand over any money until you feel satisfied and certain.

• Make sure you have a copy of the gas certificate and boiler certificate, and proof that any other appliances supplied with the property are in good working order – and above all, safe.

• Find out if you will need to pay a ‘summer retainer’ (an amount paid to the landlord to keep the house ‘reserved’ until the start of the academic year, usually in September or October).

• Check the inventory very carefully and flag up any inconsistencies immediately (for example, if the inventory states that the kitchen is well-equipped and clean, and you find it unhygienic and lacking, this must be brought to the attention of the landlord or letting agency). Take photographs as soon as you move in if there are any areas in the house you think could raise problems when you come to move out – for example, bare patches of carpet, cigarette burns on the arm of the sofa, rust patches on the bathroom taps, stains on the mattress. You will be taken aback – aghast, even – by some of the interesting relics you might find left by the previous inhabitants.

• Remember as a tenant you have rights (see below) and should not have to put up with leaks, draughts, faulty plumbing or electrics, loose floorboards, cracked windows, backed-up drains or mouldy walls. If it is not something simple enough to sort out yourself, keep on at the landlord or letting agency until they sort it out for you. Get it down in writing as a phone call might not be enough. Often the longer a problem is left, the worse it gets and the more expensive it becomes.

• If you pay a deposit, make sure you get the details of the deposit protection scheme sent to you by the landlord or letting agency within two weeks of moving in. Get a receipt for any money handed over.

• Be clued up about your rights: again your student accommodation or welfare office will be able to offer you guidance; charity Shelter also has an advice service for young people. Even if you have a problem with a housemate (rather than a landlord or letting agency), there are various housing experts on hand who can help. If you are living in a HMO, be aware of the regulations with which your landlord is legally required to comply. Note however that any building occupied by students and managed by a Higher Education institution is not classified as a HMO for licensing purposes.

• Make sure the house is fitted with a smoke alarm (the landlord should have one fitted by law).

• Treat the house with respect: this means keeping up-to-date with all the boring but essential little household chores: changing lightbulbs, putting out the bins, unblocking the toilet, cleaning the bathroom, polishing the surfaces, hoovering the carpets, general simple repair jobs. Even pushing a mower around the lawn once or twice a year if you are lucky enough to have a garden. If you have a shirker or two in your midst, draw up a rota. In fact, this is advisable from the outset to ensure fairness.

• Abide by the terms of your contract – if you stick to your side of the agreement, the landlord will almost invariably stick to theirs, and everyone is happy. Sounds reasonable and straightforward, and in theory it is...

Don’t:

• Damage the house or its contents, or allow your housemates or any house guests (including drunken party guests) to do so either. In the end, you’ll all have to pay for any breakages or defects that occurred during your tenancy.

• Ignore warning signs when you view properties: these include damp patches, condensation, mouse droppings, frayed wires, peeling paint or wallpaper, rattling or cracked windows, slipped or missing roof tiles, mouldy bathrooms, rotten woodwork, dodgy drains and gutters, damaged walls and ceilings, sticky carpets and old kitchen appliances. Feel free to be nosy and test things – flush the toilets, turn on the taps, check the cookers and hobs, open the fridge and inspect inside drawers and wardrobes – always keeping in mind that you are the one who has to live with any imperfections.

• Forget to lock all the doors and windows at night and at all times when there is nobody in the house.

• Throw frequent wild and raucous parties that go on until the wee hours. This will, at best, disgruntle the neighbours and at worst, you’ll have environmental health or even police officers knocking on the door. Repeat offending could result in your justifiable eviction and even a criminal record.

• Unreasonably refuse your landlord access to the property.

• Allow the house to fall in to a state of dilapidated chaos and mess: you never know when you might get that 24-hour inspection notice from the landlord or letting agency. They might take a dim view of being confronted with two weeks’ worth of washing-up stacked precariously by the sink, strewn piles of dirty laundry and discarded empty cans and bottles littering the floors and tables, a living room filled with comatose hangover casualties, crusty carpets, grimy bathrooms and a kitchen filled with take-out pizza boxes, unidentifiable aromas and traffic cones.  

• Put up with more than one rental increase per year. A landlord is only entitled to put the rent up once a year, and only ever by a reasonable amount (rarely more than 10%).

• Just go for the cheapest digs you can find. Cheap rarely means cheerful. You get what you pay for.

• Have lofty expectations. While it is obviously right to avoid dodgy hovels and poky dives, for the cash-strapped student it is probably unrealistic to look for spacious, opulent penthouses with en suites, swimming pools, chandeliers and all mod cons. You will only end up disappointed.

• Put all the bills in just one housemate’s name. This is asking for trouble, or at least a whole load of resentment. Agree in advance how you will sort out household finances, and make sure the arrangement is fair for everybody in the house. Housemates living in fairness and agreement makes for a happy house indeed.

• Ignore advice: if a housing officer suggests that a particular letting agency should be avoided, then avoid it. If you have been warned against living in a particular street, don’t waste your time looking at houses on that street.

• Take parents for granted. For example, if your student house doesn’t come equipped with that most underrated of labour-saving appliances, the trusty washing machine, make sure the house is located reasonably close to a launderette. University is one big steep learning curve, so while you’re there, you might as well learn how to operate a washing machine if you don’t already know. Also take the opportunity to learn how to use an iron. It’s not fair on mum to have you traipse back home every weekend with a big black sack of your soiled smalls and whiffy crumpled shirts.