I have been renting the same house with some friends for a little over 18 months and my contract runs out in the summer. This is just going to give you some tips and hints which express my opinions and views on renting private student accommodation and can maybe help some students looking for their first house-share. 1st tip - START EARLY In most big student cities, you really need to decide who you are going to live with and where you want to live quite early in the year, with most places being chosen in January/February. There are some dives out there so make sure you and your friends are happy with where you are choosing. I first started looking ...  Read the complete review

Private accommodation as a student is an absolute minefield. To start with (usually) you have a very minimal budget and this attracts landlords who sometimes take advantage. I have rented as a student in the Bristol area and it's ok as long as you know what you are letting yourself in for but quite often the accommodation is not of the standard it would be for say a professional couple who are in their first jobs. The tendency is for the Landlord to treat students less favourably and to view them with suspicion (ie. why should I get secure locks fitted on the doors? They will probably trash my property with all night parties anyway). So it is worth shopping around.  Read the complete review

After my on-campus accommodation at the University of Essex expired, I had to move out into private accommodation, electing to move into a 6-person house in the quaint village of Wivenhoe right next to the University. We were let the house by Colchester-based estage agent East Anglian Properties, and although mostly it was fine, they did try to sting us a few times. The main problem that students face is that, when up against a rich, experienced company, you're more often than not going to have to yield to each of their whims. For instance, our house had a boiler problem, and it took 3 weeks to be fixed, with our landlord sending us rather diminutive portable ...  Read the complete review

In general at University and especially in Huddersfield stay away from renting through agencies. There are a lot of these in Huddersfield and it is easy to fall into the trap of going with this so called easy options. As it is though you are better off renting through a University approved private landlord. Letting agents receive a fee from landlords to fill their houses and manage any complaints the tenants may have. The problem with this is that agents don't have to have any prior knowledge of renting properties and can just give you poor service and the last thing you need with your studies is problems with your house. Private landlords care about the well ...  Read the complete review

My experience of private accomodation has been mixed. I live in a student area and thus crime is high. I have been burguled and it was very upsetting, Im therefore always winging on about security. One thing to bear in mind when you are deciding who to live with is can you trust them to shut the door if they are drunk and coming in last at night? When looking through the masses of landlords houses I have some tips to make sure you do: *Ask about bolier saftey checks, is there a certificate to say its been done in the last year *Check walls and inside nooks and crannys for damp, and underneath the boiler. *Ask your landlord to put all repairs ...  Read the complete review