Find the right student house

3 sensible suggestions to help you find the right house

It’s house-hunting season again! Choosing a house to live in is a huge part of university life: you will have to do it each year after you leave the luxurious comforts of your halls of residence (well, mine were luxurious but I have heard bad experiences).

The house you choose will also become the place where you make some of the best memories of your life, so choosing one that you are going to be happy and comfortable in is important!

House-hunting seems to throw students head-first into the adult world.

I am now obsessed with double-glazing, after one of my student houses had actual gaps in the windows that constantly let in cold air.

During an extensive snow-fall one winter, I found myself frantically scrunching up tin-foil in the gaps – this was to no avail.

So…

Tip number 1: Ask the boring questions

It’s mundane, but don’t forget stuff like ‘what type of windows are these?’ when you’re viewing houses. If you walk into a room and the windows are dripping with condensation and there’s mould on the ceiling, chances are it’s going to be verrry cold in the winter.

You might also want to ask other questions such as who does the maintenance, whether the showers are good, whether there’s central heating and who pays the bills.

Damp, cold rooms can be a real health hazard while you’re studying – so moral of the story is: always check the windows.

Tip number 2: Don’t rush

When finding my second-year house my group of friends consisted of 11 people who wanted to live together. We found ourselves sprinting to the letting agents to sign the last 11-person house on the market that year.

After we had signed, the realisation dawned that we had actually signed for an 11-bed house with only one working shower. The practicalities seemed horrifying.

Don’t rush and make sure your intended housemates are going to be compatible for the entire year!

The truth is that houses will get released at different times in the year – so it’s important to be organised and start looking early on. But don’t panic and rush into renting a house you are not sure about and always consider that you will have to live there for a year !

Sorting everything before the Christmas holidays is probably a good timescale to work with – but make sure you’re watching and viewing houses from early on to ensure you get to look at any that fit your group number.

Tip number 3: Visit as many houses as you can

Book viewings with letting agents and try and get all your flatmates to come along and have a look too – if you see one you really like its handy to have everyone there to agree and get signing as soon as possible.

Also, consider other practicalities such as how far away the house is from uni, the supermarket and the nearest pub.

Chances are as a student living in a city you won’t have a car, so you don’t want to be wasting lots of time during the year walking to places. Other things to consider are how much the rent is and whether this would be financially viable for you.

At the end of the day…

…don’t be disheartened if the housing search doesn’t go your way. When you’re going to be living with some of your best friends for a year, the type of house you get is a relatively minor issue. Any issues with the house will be annoying but will probably just become jokes between you and your flatmates and all be part of the character-building that student life entails!

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If you need a hand finding the perfect student accommodation for you and your friends, Purple Frog will help. We have a wide range of properties, including for 11 people. Lots of your properties have bills included in the rent, which takes the stress out of worrying about keeping your house warm. Plus, there’s free contents insurance for your stuff. Find your new student home, here: https://www.purplefrogproperty.com/student-accommodation/.