RENTING MADE SIMPLE A STUDENT'S GUIDE TO LIVING OFF CAMPUS - THIS IS MYSURREY - UNIVERSITY OF SURREY
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This is MySurrey. Renting made simple A student’s guide to living off campus
Moving off campus can seem daunting. Selecting housemates, finding a suitable
10 Steps to securing your property and managing your rent and utilities. However, this is a process that
everyone must undertake at some point and we hope that by providing you with
accommodation off campus the skills, knowledge and support you will be prepared to approach the rental
market confidently and successfully.
Review your tenancy agreement, have it checked
by USL and sign it. p8
March – Arrange
viewings with the agent
or landlord. p6
January –
Consider how
much you can
Collect your keys on the
afford, who you
day your contract starts.
want to live with
Make sure to get a copy
and where.p4 Pay the remainder of of the inventory and ask
your deposit and your to be present when this
first month’s rent. is being done.
Mid-February
– You can
apply for USL
accommodation.
Outcomes are
communicated at
April – Once you Gather the documents
the beginning of
find a suitable you need for the
March. p10
property, make an reference checks and
Once you have moved in
February – Start by offer and pay a ensure you have a
remember to send your
looking online for holding deposit. p7 guarantor in place. p7
Council Tax exemption
available properties that certificate to the council and
suit your needs. p5 check your waste collection
schedule.
2 UN I V E R S I T Y OF S U R R E Y 3Where do I look?
Online search engines are the way to go. Don’t be too trusting of
property adverts, ask plenty of questions and ensure you do some
research on the property history, the letting agent or landlord and
whether the rent is competitive. You can view our preferred agents
on the USL page on MySurrey. If you are only looking for a room or
have a room to advertise, you can do this via our StudentPad page
or Facebook group.
rt
Where to sta University of Surrey Let
oup tings (USL)
Facebook gr
?
want to live with
WHO do you
want to live?
W H E R E do you
dget?
£ WHAT is your bu
at living in
ve yo ur se lf th e best chance
To gi usemates,
with the right ho
a happy home these three
at you consider
it is essential th don’t always
lly. Your friends You can also use
aspects carefu u may want to
be st housemates. Yo
m ak e th e
g w ith people who
have similar these popular websites:
cons id er liv in
looking for a
STOP
les or who are • rightmove.co.uk
course schedu range as you.
the same price
property within depending
• zoopla.co.uk
ay be important
The location m or your • surreystudentpad.com
vel to University
on how you tra
placement.
4 UN I V E R S I T Y OF S U R R E Y 5£ £
Viewings £
We would always recommend that you view the property in person and that all tenants Paying a holding
see the property before making a decision. It is a good idea to arrange a second viewing
to give you time to look around properly. You don’t want to let the excitement of a nice
property taint your view of warning signs and make a rushed decision. ASK, ASK, ASK!
deposit
This is your chance to find out as much as possible about a property. If the landlord When making an offer on the property
or agent are unsure of the answer, don’t rely on their assumption. If they agree to you have selected, you will be asked for a
improvements or changes these must be written into the contract. If it’s not, it is likely the holding deposit. This is equivalent to one
landlord won’t get it done. week’s rent and must be paid before the
landlord or agent will take the property off
the market. The cost should be deducted
from your overall invoice.
Checklistem is in the house? The referencing process
g syst
What heatin
ally behind Your agent or landlord has an obligation to carry out references, some of which are a
si g n s o f d amp especi legal requirement. You will complete an application form and can expect to be asked for
Look for
ainst the wal
l.
shed up ag any of these documents. Make sure to get them ready before you even start looking.
furniture pu a CO detect
or
re sm o ke alarms and
Are th e Passport (you will need to show this in person), visa or biometrics residence permit
iler?
near the bo d shut prop
erly? University enrolment letter
th e w in d o ws open an Landlord reference, email hive@surrey.ac.uk to get a reference if you have
Do order?
decorative
I s th e h o u se in good lived on campus
furniture?
e re fir e la bels on the UK based guarantor.
Are th out their
th e cu rr e nt tenants ab Ensure your group has this ready as a delay in completing these checks could cause
Ask
. you to lose out on the property. Ask USL if you are unsure about the information being
experience s
g propertie requested.
o o k at th e neighbourin
L
lighting.
and outside e or car?
w ill yo u ke ep your bik
Where
6 UN I V E R S I T Y OF S U R R E Y 7Contracts
Review your contract thoroughly and
ask questions. Be vigilant if you are
being pressured to sign quickly. Make Guarantors
sure anything you agreed on while A guarantor is a third party, such as a parent or a relative, who agrees to pay
viewing the property has been written your rent if you fail to do so. As a student you need a guarantor who is employed
into the contract. Once you have read and able to prove their income in order to pay your share of the rent. Most
through it, highlight the clauses you contracts make you jointly and severally liable for rent meaning guarantors are
are uncertain about and email USL to liable for the rent if any tenant fails to pay.
double check the contract for you.
Without a guarantor, you can expect to pay your rent in advance.
There are many external companies who offer guarantor services,
but make sure you confirm the fees first.
Fees are banned
Your landlord or agent can no longer charge
fees before or during your tenancy. They may
charge you for the below, but these costs
should be clearly written into your contract.
Lost keys or security fobs
Late rent payments
Changing a tenant (capped at £50 or
reasonably incurred costs if higher)
If you decide to end your tenancy early.
TO TO
LET LET
Not all agents and landlords accept guarantor
! services so check before making an offer.
8 UN I V E R S I T Y OF S U R R E YApplying for a USL property USL Support Services
There are many benefits of living in a USL managed property. Your rent includes your gas, Not only do USL offer accommodation, but we also provide expert advice and
electricity and water charges as well as gardening. You won’t be responsible for the rent of support on any issues you may encounter. Our services can be accessed by any
your housemates, only your own and the finance team can help if you are having trouble student whether you are a USL resident or not.
with your rent payments. You do not need a guarantor or reference checks and won’t even
need to pay a deposit. This is a nice way to ease yourself into living off campus.
USL properties are limited, however, we Once the ballot has been run you will
always encourage students to apply! be notified of your application outcome,
Applying for a USL house is simple. usually at the beginning of March.
Log into your accommodation account Where accommodation is offered,
ams.surrey.ac.uk to apply. details of the property will be sent
to you and include a floorplan, photos
Applications open around mid-February and virtual tour. Property search
for two weeks.
You will not be able to view
Each member of the group must the property in person.
complete an application for
accommodation before the deadline. If you want to accept your offer, each
student will pay £250 prepayment which
You will be able to apply by banding will offset against the first month’s rent.
and location preference although this
is not guaranteed. You will be given full details of the
rent payment plan and due dates
Accommodation is allocated at random with your offer.
University managed Mediation Letting process
through a ballot system. accommodation service
Contract checking Legal advice Deposit disputes
10 UN I V E R S I T Y OF S U R R E Y 11Top tips
Money EPC Council Tax Support Legal
Council Tax Carry out
USL are here
You can speak Check the exemption USL are here a £3 Land
to provide
to the Student EPC rating only applies to provide Registry, Title
support and
Money team to see how until the support and Deed check
advice on any
about the energy end of your advice on any you to ensure
problems
hardship efficient the course so problems you the landlord
encounter
fund if you property final year encounter named on
during your
are having is as this students are during your the contract
tenancy.
financial indicates required to tenancy. matches that
difficulties. how much pay Council of the legal
you will Tax from their owned as
spend on graduation shown in
utilities. date until the Deed.
their contract
end date. bit.ly/37H8nIw
“After arriving at a house on move in day which was completely different to what we
Testimonials saw during the original viewing, we didn’t know what to do. The house was messy,
furniture broken and appliances unchecked for safety. The estate agents refused to
“USL were a great help when my friends and I got into legal difficulties come and inspect the property so we contacted USL. They arrived in just under half
with a landlady who was trying to take advantage of us. They supported us an hour to inspect the house and agreed that the property was in a bad state. They
throughout the process of getting our deposits back, which lead to a court case gave us great advice on how to deal with the issue and arranged for an emergency
that we won. On top of this they helped us find last minute accommodation place to stay until the issue was solved. Through constant communication over
when we thought we would have nowhere to go and they also ensured the following weeks, USL were able to help us get out of the original contract, get
we could take out a hardship loan to repay once we won the court case. a refund on the deposit and arrange for the emergency property to become our
The staff are all super supportive and doing it because they obviously care permanent place of residence. The assistance that USL provided us was exceptional
about students; it’s great to know someone’s looking out for us.” and we will without a doubt use them for our final year of study”
Josh Ben Waites
12 UN I V E R S I T Y OF S U R R E Y 13Stoughton
• Cheaper rent
• High number of student residents
MAP OF £425 - £575
GUILDFORD
Town Centre
Park Barn • Walking distance lots of amenities
£550 - £700
Great location for:
• Surrey Sports Park
12
• Tesco
10 Things to do/visit
• Vet School 17
• Hospital 1 The Boileroom 10 Guildford Lido
6 18 13 Stoke Fields, Lido Rd, Stoke Park, 11.
Guildford, GU1 4LS Guildford, GU1 1HB
£450 - £575
London Road Station 2 Electric Theatre 11 ODEON cinema
Onslow St, Guildford, Bedford Rd, Guildford,
9 Guildford Main
GU1 4SZ GU1 4SJ
4 Station
3 Guildford Castle 12 Guildford Spectrum
Guildford Park 1 13 Castle St, Guildford,
GU1 3SX
Parkway, Guildford,
GU1 1UP
14
11 4 Guildford Cathedral 13 G Live
• Closest proximity to University 8 GU2 7UP London Rd, Guildford,
GU1 2AA
5 Watts Gallery
£525 - £650 2 Watts Gallery Down 14 The Friary Centre
7 3 Lane, Guildford, GU3 GU1 4YT
1DQ
15 River Wey
16 6 AirHop Trampoline GU1 4RR
Park
12 Midleton Industrial 16 Yvonne Arnaud
Estate Rd, Guildford, Theatre
15 GU2 8XW Millbrook, Guildford,
Tesco
Bus stops
GU1 3UX
supermarket 7 Komo Cocktail Bar
Mill St, Weymead 17 Wild Wood
Taxi Rank Gym/fitness House, Millbrook, Adventure
Guildford, GU1 3YA Peacock Wood,
Hospital Ideal for walking/cycling
5 Lido Road, Guildford,
8 Casino Nightclub GU1 1HB
GU1 4SQ
Train station Trend launderette
18 Stoke Park
9 Rubix Nightclub Nightingale Rd,
(on campus) Guildford, GU1 1ER
GU2 7XHThis is MySurrey.
University of Surrey Lettings (USL)
Senate House, Guildford, GU2 7XH
surrey.ac.uk/lettings
usl@surrey.ac.uk
01483 68 1111
University of Surrey Lettings (USL)
@UoSLettingsYou can also read
