Ten Top Tips for students who want to rent accommodation

Landlords who have rental properties that include gas appliances should have each appliance checked annually. Landlords have a legal obligation to provide new tenants with a copy of the gas Safety Certificate before they move in If one has not been carried out, ask the landlord to organise one.

More than likely your new landlord will ask you for a deposit or bond before you begin renting the property. This covers them if you happen to cause any damage within the property. Any costs incurred to the landlord will be taken from your deposit. Your deposit should also be protected under the terms of the Tenancy Deposit Scheme. Landlords must inform the tenants of the scheme they are using within 14 days of accepting the deposit. Make sure that you obtain receipts for all deposits and rent paid to a landlord. Usually a deposit is split between the housemates, so make sure you make a note of who paid what.

If a landlord changes their mind BEFORE the tenancy agreement is signed all they legally have to do is return the deposit back to you. They can do this even on the day of you moving in. So make sure you get your tenancy agreement signed by the landlord as soon as possible.

Make sure you are given or make an in depth list of faults within the property before you sign the agreement. Miss any damage caused by a previous tenant and you could cop the charge for it. Make sure that there is also up to date inventory of all the furniture, furnishings and fittings too, any breakages or missing articles will come out of your deposit too. If there is no inventory provided by the landlord then it’s the responsibility of the tenants to make one. You can also take digital photographs and send them by recorded delivery to the landlord or agency on your first day of the tenancy. Make sure you are covered, you don’t want any charges incurred to you at the end of the tenancy, especially if you didn’t cause the damage in the first place.

Students who rent a property and own a TV have to purchase a TV license. If the property is rented on a share basis, you will only need one license. But if you have a room in a house and all the tenants have individual tenancy agreements a TV license will be required by EACH person who has a TV in their room.

Full time students are exempt from paying council tax. Unfortunately part time students are not exempt. Full time students should avoid sharing with part time students in case the household decides to split the bill between you all.

If you are using a letting agent, they may charge you administration or reference fees. These are not returnable fees. They can charge between £20 and £100 per person. Clearly it’s the decision of the agency how much they charge, ut you could try negotiating with them if you think the fee is too steep. Try and get them down to around £20-£30. They will already be getting a fee from the landlord each month, so don’t be afraid to try and lower the reference fee. No agency should ever charge you for just viewing a property. If they do, it’s illegal.

Most tenancy agreements run for 12 months. Students renting in a non student area may be able to get a break clause inserted in to the agreement. This allows the tenant to give notice and leave at any time during the second half of the agreement. Remember a term may only run from September to the following June, which is only nine months.

You would think that burglars would avoid student houses, but you would be wrong. A six bedroom student house may have several TV’s, stereos, DVD players and PC’s, all situated in each student’s bedroom. Burglars also think that security will be lax in student properties. Ask the landlord to fit key operating locks on the windows and ‘5 lever deadlocks’ on all external doors. Before agreeing to a property go back to the area in the evening to get a feel of how safe that area is.

The rent per sharer tends to fall, as the number of people sharing increases to four. Houses that sleep 5 or more are classed as ‘Houses in Multiple Occupation’ and become more expensive for the landlord to run.