PRIVATE SHARED ACCOMMODATION

Private shared accommodation has certain benefits that a hall does not offer. If you decide to go for private accommodation you will need to find other students to share with you. The easiest way to find other students is by putting up notices around campus with your contact details. Accommodation offices have a ‘find a flatmate scheme’, to help students who are looking for accommodation on their own. When you register with the scheme, the accommodation office puts you in touch with other students to form a group to search for appropriate private accommodation.

Rent

Rent varies from region to region with the South East and London areas being the most expensive. Rent varies according to the type of house and its proximity to campus. The following table is a guide only. Please note that rent does not include bills for services such as electricity, water, etc.

Area	Rent (per week)
South East	£50–£100
South West	£50–£85
Midlands	£45–£75
North England	£40–£65
Scotland	£40–£65
Northern Ireland	£40–£60

Finding a house

If you are looking for a house, then your first point of enquiry should ideally be at your university or college accommodation office where you will find a list of available properties. The office may also have further information about where to find houses. Look around the notice-boards in departments around the university and at the Students’ Union as they occasionally have adverts for whole houses and spare rooms in shared houses.

Shops and newsagents located around your university campus usually advertise accommodation on cards in their windows. Properties to let are also advertised in the classifieds section of local newspapers.

Accommodation agencies around town can also be useful. There is normally a charge but only when you actually rent a property provided by them. Do not pay in any other circumstances. Properties let by agencies tend to be of better quality but you will be asked for references and undergo a further credit check. A full directory of letting agents is available on the web at www.ukpropertyshop.co.uk. They will also be listed in the local Yellow Pages.

House contents insurance

It advisable to take individual contents insurance when moving into private accommodation. Student houses are often targeted by thieves. Premiums for contents insurance start from around £30 a year.

House hunting

When you are house hunting with friends, make sure you all go to the house to look at it. What you think is acceptable may not be for others and vice versa. Do not go to view a property alone. It is advisable to read through housing packs provided by your Student Advice Centre. The booklet Assured and assured shorthold tenancies: a guide for tenants published by the Deputy Prime Minister’s Office is a detailed guide for tenants and is available free from your Student Advice Centre or you can download it online at www.odpm.gov.uk

Try to speak to the previous tenants, if possible, away from the landlord. They will be the best source of information on potential problems in the house. Check the rooms have useable and useful furniture, such as desks, shelves etc. The kitchen should have a cooker, fridge, and decent ventilation. If there are more than six tenants there must be two bathrooms, with ventilators or windows in the house. Check for signs of damp or mould. Mould is often peeled off and painted over. Yellowing or bubbling paper or paint is a sign of an inherent mould problem. Check the landlord’s gas safety record, and make sure it is current, as most houses in the UK have gas boilers for hot water and central heating. Find out when it was last serviced (they should be serviced annually by the gas board or a CORGI registered gas fitter). This must be updated every 12 months and the landlord is legally obliged to do this. It is a criminal offence if she or he does not.

Staining, discoloration or soot around the boiler or the gas fires is a sign of a leak or a fault and is very dangerous. The appliance could be leaking carbon monoxide which can be lethal. Ensure that the house has smoke detectors and a carbon monoxide alarm.

Check that the windows fit and shut properly. Check for electricity sockets in all rooms. Overloading a single socket with extra extensions can be a potential fire hazard. Check the furniture for British Safety Standard stickers for fire resistance. Remember, if there are night storage heaters or electric bar fires as the main source of heating, this will triple your bills. Check how far the house is from your university or college and what forms of public transport are available for you to commute.

Security

Thieves often target student houses, so check how secure the house is:

• Check whether the external doors have secure deadlocks or just a standard lock.
• Check whether the windows have key operated locks.
• Check whether there are any other doors that provide easy access for thieves, for example back doors or kitchen doors.
• Check whether anyone other than the tenant/s has a key to the house. If you have a shared tenancy, only the tenants are entitled to a key.
• Check how good the outside and the backyard lighting is. Good lighting often deters thieves at night.
• Take out insurance on your possessions/home contents.

Contracts

Before you sign a contract think about whether you want to sign joint or individual contracts (see below), and discuss this amongst yourselves and with the landlord. Don’t sign anything before you have had it checked by the housing advice service, your Student Advice Centre or Citizens Advice Bureau.

Joint versus individual

• On a joint contract you are all liable for all the rent (not just your own share) and bills. On an individual contract you are only liable for your own rent and bills.
• On a joint contract you help to decide in who moves into your house. On individual contracts the landlord can choose.
• On a joint contract you are all liable for any council tax there may be. On individual contracts the landlord is liable.
• On a joint contract the landlord does not have the right to come into your home without your prior knowledge. On an individual contract the landlord can come into the communal areas whenever she or he wants to but can only come into your room with your prior knowledge.

Most contracts run for a fixed term, usually one year. Get a break clause written in. This allows you to give notice before the fixed term is finished and terminate the contract. The wording for a break clause is legally technical. Your student accommodation office, housing advice centre and the Student Advice Centre will have copies of the correct wording. Check when the rent is payable – weekly or monthly. If the landlord asks for post-dated cheques, try to argue against them. In the UK post-dated cheques can be cashed at any time, not just after the date written on them. Try to avoid paying in cash. If the landlord insists on cash payments make sure you get a receipt for every payment. Check who is responsible for water rates and have it written into the contract.

As a full-time student you are exempt from paying council tax. But remember, only houses where all the tenants are students are exempt from council tax. If you will be sharing with other non-students, then you’ll be liable for payment.

If the landlord agrees to any necessary repairs, supplying more furniture or decorating before you move in, make sure it is written into the contract with a completion date. Remember, once you have signed the contract all that is written is legally binding. Be aware of what you are signing. Get it checked first with your local housing advice centre, Citizens Advice Bureau or your Student Advice Centre. If you have signed a joint contract then remember to keep a photocopy of the contract for your records.

Deposits

Landlords usually ask for a deposit. A deposit is an amount of money (usually the equivalent of one month’s rent) paid to the landlord at the start of the tenancy. It is security against any damage you might do to the house or the fixtures and fittings during your tenancy.

Get the deposit amount written into the contract and the date on which it will be returned – usually within 14 days of the end of the tenancy. Legally, deposits cannot be used in lieu of rent – if a landlord says she or he will keep your deposit in lieu of the last month’s rent, get her or him to sign a piece of paper to that effect.

Housemates

One of the problems you could encounter once you move into your house may be to do with the people with whom you are sharing. However great they may be as friends, they may not be so great as housemates. Little things that initially may annoy can turn into major issues over a period of 12 months. To make sharing a house with other people work, there will inevitably have to be compromise and negotiation. Things like cleaning the kitchen may seem like minor issues, but if you end up being the only person doing it, resentment may well ensue. Talk about cleaning and tidying issues. Also bear in mind that partners of your housemates could easily become permanent fixtures in the house. While you are studying you do not need the added pressure of squabbles at home. And, of course, if you and your house-mates all get on well, any major issues that come up will be easier to deal with.

Moving in

Before you move in you will need to do an inventory of the property. It is best to do a very thorough inventory so make a note of every plate and cup, every chip in the paintwork, every tear in the wallpaper, every mark on the carpet etc. If possible, take a camera with you and photograph the property. Although most landlords are trustworthy, there are always some who will try to keep your deposit because of ‘damages’. If you have photographs of the property as it was when you moved in then you will have evidence to back up your case if she or he does not return your deposit. This is time-consuming, but worth doing if you want to get your money back. Make sure the photographs are signed by yourselves and the landlord.

Utility bills (water, electricity, gas and telephone)

Check all the meters when you move in (water (if applicable), gas and electricity). When you contact the utility companies, spread the responsibility amongst yourselves. Do not put all the bills in one person’s name. The person named on the bill will be the person pursued for payment. There are several private utility providers in the UK and the prices for their services vary. Compare the costs of utility companies by checking online at www.uswitch.com

Major telephone companies in the UK are British Telecommunications (BT) and NTL. If the property that you are moving into has never had a telephone line then you will need a new line installed. Monthly rental for a standard telephone line starts from £9. You can contact BT (www.bt.com) on 0800 800 150 or NTL (www.ntl.com) on 0800 183 0123.

Council tax

Council tax is a charge made by the local authority on properties within the borough. Each property falls within a valuation band and the council tax bill is decided according to the valuation band the property is in. Council tax rates change annually and the year runs from 1 April.

Council tax exemption certificates

Students have to prove their full-time status and the university or college is obliged to issue a certificate confirming this, including the dates and the length of the course. Your college administrator or your university’s academic registrar’s office will issue these certificates. Keep this certificate safe.

The dependent or spouse of an international student will not have to pay council tax if they are not EEA citizens. International spouses who are allowed to work will not have to pay council tax as the terms of their visa state that they can have no recourse to public funds. This means that they will be exempt from council tax, as long as there are no other liable people living in the property.

You will need to get your council tax exemption certificate and send this to the council soon after you move in. The person named on the contract will be the one pursued for the payment of council tax, and it is your responsibility to make sure the council knows that you live in a student-only house and are therefore exempt. If you have non-students living in the property, the students will still need to provide their exemption certificates. If you are living with non-students, discuss with them who is going to pay what share of the council tax liability. If you move in with students and then somebody leaves university or college before the end of their course, the council will need to be informed and there could be financial implications. Talk about it sooner rather than later.

Housing advice service

This is an independent service provided by local councils for the benefit of tenants and landlords. They should be your first point of contact if you run into difficulties. They can be reached by telephone or in person. Check the local telephone directory for their number and location.