For many, the experience of leaving home is the time when you truly begin to feel like an adult. You’re cooking for yourself (however unhealthily), you’re setting your own budget (however unwisely) and doing your own washing (however many laundry disasters this may involve). For lots of students this is a liberating experience, and many arrive at Uni with their cooking and cleaning skills already honed to perfection. However, few of us have ever had to deal with the housing market before, and finding somewhere to live for your second year can be one of the most stressful and scary experiences of your first year. Don’t panic, here are the things a couple of second years wish we’d been told before we went house hunting.
LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION.
Busy student areas, such as Pennsylvania Road, are highly sought after student territory – but living so conveniently close to the Uni comes with a higher price tag. Living a bit further away from campus and town is undeniably cheaper. If you are happy to bring your bike to Exeter and cycle to lectures every day, or just don’t mind a half an hour walk, this could be a very financially friendly option. However, it’s a long walk home from Mosaic to Mount Pleasant, and you could end up feeling quite isolated. The same goes for choosing a house with non-student neighbours, fellow students are far more sympathetic to house parties than families with young children.
POKE AROUND?
Set up and attend as many viewings as you possibly can. Be thorough when looking round houses – don’t worry about being nosy as this could potentially be your home for a year! Check bedrooms for good storage and bed sizes, as well as evidence of serious problems like damp and leaks. The last thing you want is to open your door next September to find mouldy walls and an unpleasant wet smell! If the estate agent showing you around is not forthcoming with crucial information like this, ask the residents – if they’ve had a bad experiences they’ll probably be more than willing to share it with you. Another common problem in student houses is unwanted lodgers: mice! Do not hesitate to ask about any existing rodent problems, mice make greedy and unhygienic housemates. Remember to check practical things like the number of fridges compared to the number of residents, is there a washing machine? Is the furnishing up to scratch? How many showers are there? Is there a kitchen table? Is a communal area important to you as a group, in other words, are you planning on hosting predrinks?
?DEALING WITH ESTATE AGENTS AND LANDLORDS
Do not stand for unreliable estate agents or landlords. They make a fortune from student housing, and seeing as they’re taking a substantial amount of your money, you deserve to be treated with respect! If, for example, you arrange a viewing but on the day find yourself waiting around in the cold for someone who has evidently ‘forgotten’ about you, ring them and insist they turn up. We all know how difficult it is to decide a day/time where all you and your future housemates are free, so don’t let your precious time go to waste! Make sure they explain to you exactly what their stance on bills is, sometimes electricity and water is included and sometimes it isn’t, and check how many months the contract requires you to pay for. There are some cases where students have managed to barter their rent down, but be careful: if an estate agent or landlord thinks you are wasting their time they have plenty of other offers to choose from. Always aim to be assertive rather than rude, estate agents and landlords control your deposit and are therefore dangerous to have as enemies. And lastly…
DON’T PANIC!
When the house hunt begins, it may start to feel as though houses are running out faster than SSB tickets, and that everyone but you has found the perfect place to live! This is simply not true; there are thousands of houses in Exeter and more than enough space for everyone. If you miss the hype for houses when it first hits, plenty more will become available throughout the year. There may well be tears and tantrums, but in the end everyone finds their second year nest.
Photo credits: http://weheartit.com/entry/40880529, www.comedy.com