For many of you, it’ll be your first time out of home and venturing into the unknown can be daunting – so here are eight things you need to know before you rent.
We look at the boring but handy legal stuff you need to aware of, as well as some more general tips.
1. Right to rent
This may sound like it doesn’t apply to you, but anyone renting needs to be able to prove they’re legally allowed to rent in the UK – otherwise you’re stuck at the first hurdle.
Landlords must carry this out at least 28 days before you move in.
You have the right to rent if:
- You’re a British or European Economic Area citizen
- You have indefinite leave (without restriction) to remain in the UK, or you have settled status
- You have permission to be in the UK (for example, if you are on a work or student visa)
- You have been granted a time-limited right to rent by the Home Office
Make sure documents you need to prove any of those (like a passport or visa) are in date.
2. Renting from the right person
Just like you have to prove you’ve got the right to rent, any landlord must also check out.
Most universities will have a scheme you can sign up showing accredited landlords they trust and whose properties meet certain criteria.
If previous students have complained about landlords to the university, they can be struck off schemes.
Search for schemes here.
Talk to older students about their experiences with letting agents or landlords – as they’ll have first-hand experience of dealing with them on a regular basis.
There are a few handy tips here you can read on what to look for.
Your landlord must also:
- Repair things in a reasonable time when you report them
- Arrange yearly gas safety checks by a registered engineer
- Fit working smoke alarms on each floor of your home
But you are responsible for:
- Small jobs like changing light bulbs or testing smoke alarms
- Cleaning (unless there’s a cleaner as part of your agreement)
- Report any repairs and allow access to get work done
3. Guarantors, deposits and fees
A lot of students won’t have a strong credit history, especially if they haven’t worked full-time before.
So landlords will usually ask for a guarantor – which just refers to someone with a stronger financial track record (it could be your mum or dad) who will agree to pay the rent if you fail to.
You’ll also need to pay a deposit – usually a month or five weeks’ worth of rent – to secure any property. You’ll get this back at the end of your tenancy, minus any charges for damages or cleaning fees.
That deposit must be kept in a scheme – a third party that hangs on to it until the end of the tenancy – when the landlord will tell them to release it all or ask for charges for damages.
Don’t be afraid to go to the ombudsman or complain to the holding scheme if you feel you’ve been wrongly charged, even if landlords look to intimidate you with threats of long waits or further charges – no one can touch that money until a decision has been made.
You’ll also be sent an inventory at the start of the tenancy, which states the condition of the flat (from any scuffs on the walls to any marks on the floor) and what is in each room. This document is used to help determine how much deposit you’ll get back – so make sure you go through it carefully to see it’s accurate before signing off on it. You’ll be charged for any and everything that’s damaged or missing.
And it would certainly help to listen to your parents and take photos of everything when you move in and keep them – it could save you a lot of time, stress and money at the end of the year.
Here is a helpful guide of what to take photos of.
One final thing – it’s worth knowing that it is illegal for landlords to try and charge any cheeky extra fees for protecting your deposit or for doing credit and reference checks or other administrative tasks.
4. Mould
Damp and mould are some of the most common problems for tenants, and can present a serious health hazard – but it’s tricky to know what to do about it.
Jenny Lamb, policy officer at Shelter, took us through what you can do (but a warning, she says taking action can be risky – read on to see what we mean)…
5. Moving quickly – but not too quickly
Many of you will have secured your accommodation for the coming academic year already – but in a lot of cases, you’ll need to decide on your housing situation for the next year quickly too.
Many student rentals for the next year are snapped up come Christmas, so it’s important you move fast.
Now we’ve stressed the need for speed, we’re also going to urge a bit of caution.
Freshers, or first-year students: choose your housemates carefully.
You may only have a couple of months to decide, but make sure you’re absolutely comfortable with living with housemates for a full year.
That can be tricky, but worth bearing in mind when embarking on viewings, especially if you don’t want to end up constantly arguing over whose turn it is to clean the toilet or take the bins out.
There’s a great guide you can read here on how to select potential housemates for the next year.
6. Reading the contract
It’s long, it’s boring and going to the pub with your new housemates may be much more exciting, but do read your tenancy agreement properly.
There are lots of clauses and jargon that make any contract confusing and intimidating, but take the time to read it thoroughly – and if something feels wrong and doesn’t sound right – question it.
Citizens Advice has a great guide to understand your tenancy agreement here.
7. Environment
Don’t underestimate the importance of having a good base to go home to.
Zoopla has a nice broad checklist to tick off when you’re looking around somewhere that you can read here – but don’t be afraid to be more picky as well.
Homesickness, hangovers and uni work deadline stress can all contribute negatively towards your mental health – so having a nice space to call home, perhaps with lots of natural light, is imperative.
It may be tempting to take the cheaper box room with no windows to save the extra money, but think carefully about where you want to wake up every day.
Living near your uni or having good transport links is definitely something to consider, too, as you don’t want to be spending your entire student life travelling.
Logistics app Citymapper will absolutely be your best friend for getting around – and can help you see how you could travel to and from a potential new home.
8. Bills and cleaning
A few things on this.
Keeping your place clean is all tenants’ responsibility, so make sure you’re doing your bit or reminding others to clean up after themselves.
The place will need to be really clean for inspections during the tenancy and by the time you move out – but it’s worth remembering that it is now illegal for landlords to require you to pay for a professional clean at the end of your tenancy (more on that here).
It’s really important that setting up bills and things like a TV licence are done before or as soon as you move in – but like the tenancy agreement, make sure you check contract lengths and break clauses.
Next, make sure you share the responsibilities out among the house equally.
That could look like one person looking after sourcing and paying for the WiFi, while another does the utilities bill.
A small sidenote – you don’t need to pay any council tax if you are a student, but if someone in your house isn’t, the house is liable to pay it.
Don’t worry about doing the sums to work out who owes who what. Instead you can use the brilliant (and free!) Splitwise app, which lets you and your housemates add various bills and does the maths for you.
Good luck – and happy renting.