Renting A Student House

[lincs]

I'm looking to rent a large student house in Leeds come september (i'm probbaly too old for this, but what the hell). There will be 7 or 8 of us. Just wondering whether anyone has any good advice when it come renting student places in particular. is there anything to watch out for in the contracts or any sneaky tricks landlords like to pull (aside from the criminal rates these people charge)? I've rented in the past so have a good idea of what to look out for, but never as a student. Would appreciate advice from anyone who may have a bit of an idea of the student market in general and/or the leeds student area.

[cartimandua51]

I'm looking to rent a large student house in Leeds come september (i'm probbaly too old for this, but what the hell). There will be 7 or 8 of us. Just wondering whether anyone has any good advice when it come renting student places in particular. is there anything to watch out for in the contracts or any sneaky tricks landlords like to pull (aside from the criminal rates these people charge)? I've rented in the past so have a good idea of what to look out for, but never as a student. Would appreciate advice from anyone who may have a bit of an idea of the student market in general and/or the leeds student area.

don't know whether they count as sneaky tricks, but normal conditions of student renting (reflecting the fact that students have no assets, no reliable income & can disappear off the face of the earth very quickly) include:

• requirement for a guarantee from a UK resident parent
• 9 / 10 or 11 month contract depending on the area ( there is a very narrow letting opportunity window; if a student leaves in March th LL hasn't a hope in hell of finding anyone to take his place)
• ban on pets (they get abandoned)
• clauses relating to excessive noise & parties (irate neighbours)

On the plus side, most student LLs are reasonably relaxed about things like blu-tack marks on the wall - you don't usually get it in an immaculate state, so the standards at the end aren't as high. A lot of wear and tear comes with the territory.

I was a student LL for ten years & had to deal with everything from a terrified female student ringing my home at 3.00am when a drunken flatmate was trying to break down her door, to complaints from neighbours about one student keeping pythons and tarantulas in his room... Student letting is not for the faint-hearted!

Edited January 31, 2012 by cartimandua51

[porca misèria]

Are you real students? If so, does your university have an accommodation office that deals with things like approving landlords, having them sign up to a code of conduct, developing productive long-term relationships with them?

[Si1]

Are you real students? If so, does your university have an accommodation office that deals with things like approving landlords, having them sign up to a code of conduct, developing productive long-term relationships with them?

+1

def go thru Leeds University accompodation office, definitely definitely.

also checck these out, some really impressive private halls, ensuite bathroom, etc these days, why have a dodgy terrace when you can get this? (ok so prob more expensive but also commonly right in town/nr campus):

http://www.unite-students.com/student-accommodation-leeds?

http://www.opalstudents.com/student-accommodation/leeds/listing/

[Rentergirl]

Don't let them cram you into the rafters! If they rent out a house aimed at so many people, the facilities (fridges/bathrooms/even furniture ie sofas) must be enough for all of you. And if it's got a third floor - it needs a fire escape. And Unite is horrible: really dear and party-central (you might like this but drunken 18 years old? You've been there.)

[porca misèria]

Don't let them cram you into the rafters! If they rent out a house aimed at so many people, the facilities (fridges/bathrooms/even furniture ie sofas) must be enough for all of you. And if it's got a third floor - it needs a fire escape. And Unite is horrible: really dear and party-central (you might like this but drunken 18 years old? You've been there.)

I'd expect ample vs cramped space to be reflected in the price - and students traditionally have tight budgets.

I guess that's the classic difference between the poor student and the 'Bullingdon club' lifestyle.

[lincs]

bit of an update on my experiences. it sounds like most of the decent stuff gets snapped up in november/december before a july move in, which just seems crazy to me compared to what i'm used to. First off I can't believe the cheek of some (in fact virtually all) letting agents when it comes to viewings. Most of the properties we viewed, the agent as far as I could see gave virtually no notice to the tenants. If no one answered they just let themselves in and proceeded to let us trek through the house as we pleased. Most rooms had individual locks and if no one answered, again they just opened them up and let us wander around and in many cases people were in and just in bed but agent almost insisted we still go in and have a look. In a lot of cases there was personal stuff on display and one of them even boasted about some photos he'd took of stuff he'd found in ppls houses when they'd been doing viewings. Made me feel actually quite uncomfortable. Is this standard practice in the student landlord game since they probably just assume they can get away with it? Also many of the agents were charging upwards of £100 per person signing on fee, so for us as much as 1K for signing a contract and doing a viewing...makes me sick.