Every year most students move into student accommodation so that they can live and study at university. However, it can be a task finding the correct place for you to live and its tricky finding something that ticks all the boxes. As a student in my second year of studying, I thought I would share with you some tips that I wish I knew when I was moving into student accommodation.
TAKE PHOTOS. This is so important, especially if your landlord has a habit of blaming you for damages that were already there. When you move in to your new accommodation, be sure to take some photos of damages, marks or stains that were already there. This way your landlord cannot accuse you of doing the damages.
LOCATION. Be realistic when it comes to location. It could be a lovely place for you to live, but it might be too far away from your place of study. Will you really want to incur yourself extra travel costs and time? Will this be worth it?
HEAT. I made the mistake of not checking for double glazing in my first rented accommodation. It may not seem like it, but this can make a huge difference to bills and your welfare. Its not nice to be cold, so make sure you consider double glazed housing before signing anything!
PRICE VS. QUALITY. Keep in mind the phrase "you get what you pay for", and make sure you actually do! Landlords may have a habit of trying to rip off students because they're younger and they think that they can get away with it. Do some research about the price vs. the quality of the accommodation in your area and make sure you're getting value for money!
TAKE YOUR TIME. There tends to be a rumor that goes around every year that all the houses get taken up early. This is not true! Take the time to look around for properties, chances are the longer you wait the cheaper the property will be!
REVIEWS. Once you find a property you like, search the landlord and look at reviews online. Do they try and rip you off? Do they try and blame you for everything? Make sure you know what you've got yourself in for if you do end up signing for the property.
OPEN MIND. Finally, student life isn't exactly luxurious. You should be willing to make compromises with what you can afford, so enter the world of property searching with an open mind!
He he - I have got the pen in that picture, it is my favourite pen! I agree with you about taking photos - people will try to take everything from you when you leave a property if you can't argue your case!
ReplyDeleteOMG I love this pen, I actually had another one before this but I lost it, so I just bought this same one again! And I agree with you also, I've made this mistake before!
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