student accommodation

What You Need To Know About Student Accommodation

Posted by Jon Sage on in Accommodation
small room

It is important for a student to protect himself or herself from landlords that can take his or her money.  The major expenditure for a student is rent unless you are planning to be a heavy drinker, which can only get you into debt.

As a student, you ought to know your rights and get organized. Troomhis way, you will not worry about losing your deposit or getting evicted. If you get into sticky situations, you are bound to get help. Accommodation officers are not just there to look pretty; rather they are there to provide you assistance whenever you need it. Everything gets down to common sense

Things to know about student accommodation

Gas safety certificate

This is a legal obligation, which landlords need to provide their tenants with a copy. In fact, it is needed before a tenant moves into the property.

Deposit protection

Landlords are required to protect deposits from tenants. This is under Tenancy Deposit Scheme. Therefore, they need to inform tenants about this scheme. Having inventory in place is important. This makes it easy for tenants to claim their deposits. This can be digital photographs of the first day of tenancy.

Tenancy agreement

If the landlord changes mind about tenancy agreement, he or she is required to give back the holding deposit to the tenant. It does not matter whether the day of tenancy comment has been agreed. As soon as you agree to the terms, both parties need to sign Tenancy agreement.

Rent sharing

If you are living in some room, then the rent should fall with the increasing number of people sharing the room. However, you should not live in student accommodation that has more than four students in a room. Moreover, if the property is rented on a room with wide windowshared basis, then you only need one TV licence. However, if every tenant has a different agreement with the landlord, then separate agreements are required for every person with a TV in their rooms.

Council Tax
Usually, if you are a full-time student, you will be exempted from paying council tax. This does not apply to part-time students. It is advisable for full-time students to avoid sharing their rooms with part-time students.

Burglars
Usually, burglars target student accommodation areas. This is because they know there are many electrical goods and security is likely to be lax. Therefore, ensure you live in a secure place.

Understanding Costs Of Student Accommodation

Posted by Jon Sage on in Accommodation
boy in room

When choosing student accommodation, you need to consider the type of property. Moreover, you should explore different options before you make a conclusion. In the first year, you may reside in the halls of residence. However, after this, you will discover more options, each with their benefits and costs.

Traditionally, students used to live in shared flats or houses. You will hotel roomfind such old style properties near the university.

What to consider

It is important to weigh your options, pros and cons of different accommodation options before deciding. The following are some of the factors to help you make a decision:

  • Location and security
  • Car parking
  • Social life
  • Quality of accommodation
  • Inclusive bills

Usually, managed student accommodation tends to appear quite expensive. This is because it is inclusive of bills. You also need to look at the money value instead of the cost. You may also consider renting a room if you do not have a group you can share with. These places offer a great way of making friends

Costs of accommodation

PCM and PPW

In Edinburgh, the cost of student accommodation varies from one property to another. It is necessary to understand the type of accommodation that is reasonable to you. Usually, the majority of lettings and landlords use Per Person Per Week or PPPW format. This can help you to determine the cost of rent on a weekly basis. You will also find this more suitable for students as compared to renting residential non-student accommodation.

Although, the rent is provided in PPPW format, this does not mean that you are going to pay the rent on weekly basis. Therefore, you need to check, but the common way is paying rent in semester instalments.

Length of Contracts

Before you nice roomsign a tenancy agreement, you should check the duration of the contract. Usually, the duration is 12 months no matter the months you will be staying at the university. If you want to stay over summer and work, you will find the annual contract worth it.

There are private student accommodation providers that will charge you for the time you will be studying. If your agreement is short and you intend to stay over summer, you may consider letting them know in advance.