We students not Veggies

I have been renting student accommodation for almost 15 years. I now have six properties and a total of twenty-eight available beds. To begin with I would advertise the properties myself and handle all the administration and maintenance issues myself too. But as I continued to acquire more properties over the years, as well as holding down a full time job I eventually had to enlist the services of a letting agency to manage the properties on my behalf. The standard of service I have received from letting agencies has varied widely. I have used a couple who were absolutely terrible. Badly organised with inexperienced employees who have sometimes completely failed to get tenants into my properties before the start of term. This can be a massive blow to a landlord who has spent money improving a property only for it to stand empty for months on end not making a penny. On the other hand some agencies will bend over backwards to get you on board and to ensure your property rents each year. It is important to try and build a rapport with the agent and bear in mind you are paying them to provide you with a service and you need them to deliver. Of course it works both ways and you need to do everything you can to make your property appealing to new tenants. As an experienced landlord I can usually spot a good agent but I have made some costly mistakes in the past.

Renting student accommodation is not as straightforward as it seems. Things have changed a lot over recent years and it is no longer acceptable to offer bog standard facilities. The rules and regulations surrounding student accommodation are really strict and if as a landlord you fail to comply with the rules you can soon find yourself off the books.

First of all a big thankyou for the tips found on this cheeky little student accommodation Nottingham site: www.student-accommodation-nottingham.com I neve knew there were so many tips and tricks available when it comes to finding that perfect student house. 

The best advice I gained from this site has to be the unipol and deposit protection scheme information. You can live safe, comfortable and a little looked after also in fully aware that your deposit will make its way back to you so long as you behave.

Nottingham really has it all. It is no London yet it has the night life and student life that you would associate with a larger more established city.

We have now moved into our student accommodation in Lenton and the parties have begun. Are we tidy YES, are we free from accidents NO:

Just kidding, I don't drink red, only white wine for me.

What came first? The chicken or the egg? Tricky business trying to work out the natural order of things sometimes, so how do you decide what to do first when you are looking at renting a student property?

So, you may be in one of several situations which will impact the decision you make. Firstly, I will assume that if you are a first year student then you will be moving into University halls and will therefore not need to rent a student property from a Landlord or Lettings agency. If you are a second year student then you will be in one of several positions. Firstly, you could be attending a university near enough to your family home so that you will not need to move away – this is brilliant for you as it will be cheaper, although perhaps not as much fun when it comes to all night parties (but I am sure you will have made some friends at university who will be having parties which you can attend!) If this is not the case then you will be a second year student looking for a property to rent. In this case, you will come under one of two categories. Firstly, you are a student who has made lots of close friends at university and would like a house to rent with these friends. Or, you are a student who has made friends but is not particularly keen on house sharing with them and would rather rent a room in a shared house.

Depending on which of these brackets you fit into, your house hunting will be fairly different – as will your experience whilst renting.

If you are looking to rent a house with friends, you will be looking for a house rental (not a room rental); you and your friends will jointly be responsible for paying the rent and bills and maintaining the property. If one of your friends leaves for whatever reason during the tenancy, you will still be responsible for their portion of the rent – so you will need to either find the funds to pay this or find another tenant. It is worth considering this when you take out the lease as the Landlord will expect their rent to be paid and if you are not able to do this (or find another housemate to help) then you may find yourself looking for a new house mid-term and if you are in an area where student housing is in high demand, then this is not the best position to be in!

If you are looking for a room to rent in a student house, then you will have a contract with the Landlord for your room and your portion of the rent. You will be jointly responsible for the upkeep of communal areas within the property but under separate tenancy agreements. You are still likely to be jointly responsible for bills within the property and this is an agreement you will have to make amongst those living there. Bearing in mind that you will not really know your housemates at the start of the contract, you will take some time to establish boundaries – when do you use the bathroom? How does the kitchen storage work and when will you be preparing meals? How will you manage joint responsibilities like cleaning the kitchen? If you are concerned about any of this then talk to the lettings agency or landlord, it is likely they have reassured others in the past and given them advice on how to resolve potential issues.