To think the student housing system would be much better if you didn’t have to decide who to live with until the end of the first year

[Ihaveseenitallbefore]

The current system (especially in certain cities such as York, Manchester, Durham) requires 18 year olds living away from home for the first time to decide who they want to live with within only a few weeks/months of knowing them. Oftentimes the early stages of uni are a time of desperation with friendships where people won’t necessarily be being their authentic selves. It seems silly that in some cities students sign up in early November with a deposit and contact and then have to wait the entire rest of the academic year to see a different side/the true colours of their housemates. Obviously the situation is different for second years and/or in the rare situation where DC knew people from before uni to live with. Ainu to think it’s silly how early ‘housing season’ comes and that the system would be far better if it wasn’t until the end of the first year that deposits were put down on houses?

Yes, Cambridge is still like that. Much less stressfull.

Yes it all seems a little early. But it also means that it's done and sorted, one less thing to stress about.
It's all an experience; making decisions, getting on with people. They can always move house by exchanging with someone if they really want to.

Oh and also the LL have thousands of pounds of deposits for 8 months before the tenancy even starts. So students are finding their current years rent as well as having to tie up hundreds of pounds in a deposit for the next year which the student loan doesn't cover.
It's so unfair on those without the benefit of parental support
Working your way through uninis one thing. Providing LL with huge deposits so far in advance of that service seems horribly unfair.

Don't LL have to put the deposit in the deposit scheme? I don't think they get to spend it so not really any advantage to getting it early.

Still doesn't help students trying to find the money! All a function of how early it all happens.
And I assume they get the interest?

Yes it's the landlords driving it. For several years I ran the private accommodation accreditation scheme for a university, and tried desperately to hold it back until February. Unfortunately the big agents in town started pushing students as soon as they arrived, telling them there was a shortage of accommodation and they needed to book before Christmas, and no matter how much I and the SU tried to get the message across, it felt like a losing battle. Then of course the landlords that were registered with me tried to pressurise the Uni into advertising sooner, as they felt they were missing out on getting students.

I was there seven years and despite everything I did, it just didn't get any better.

They probably don't get interest if they haven't got the money themselves.

@Namechangedasouting987 @coffeeaddict77 Landlords must put the deposits in a tenancy deposit scheme. TDS is the usual one. They don’t get any interest. Then the scheme releases the deposit back to the student as long as the property is returned in good condition.

@Ihaveseenitallbefore The whole thread shows how much hatred there is for landlords. Asking what would happen without them was a rhetorical question. Of course we cannot do without them. My DD rented decent enough flats from landlords and one had their maintenance guy on site so it was well maintained and well run.

For years students have rushed out to get the better places. Of course they want decent flats that are looked after but some Dc always want a “party flat” where landlords don’t care and the students don’t have to. In many areas building more student homes is very difficult. What about housing need amongst adults and families? We cannot expand housing to 2nd years and still have a housing crisis we just leave to fester.

Some cities have always had housing shortages. The student can avoid them if it matters too much. However it’s not landlords driving prices or lack of accommodation, it’s general lack of housing. Lack of Supply and high demand equals high prices. Many landlords have pulled out too. Uni is not compulsory and an expensive city is not compulsory.

My dd is currently second year and completely agrees with you so lives in halls. She likes that there is no dramas, fall outs and squabbling over stuff like overnight guests and bills. She plans to live in halls for her final year too.

Totally, it’s absolutely ridiculous!
dd started uni in covid times and a few of them cobbled together a house of 6 - so you had
dd and flatmate - good friends from the start
a friend of DD’s from home
a couple of others they vaguely knew and a randomer who came in when Simone later dropped out.
pretty rubbish!!
ds is in first year now - there seems to be 4 of them wanting to move in together - but ds having some major MH issues so not even sure what’s going to happen but still needs to secure a house! They haven’t viewed any & im urging him to get in with it as it’s in a v popular uni city!! They do say up to Feb is ok, but that’s still early.
In ‘my day’ it was definitely at end of spring term and friendships were cemented a bit more. I lived with 2 halls friends and one of their friends.
To me it’s greedy landlords and panicking students, the unis have no say in it.

London is completely different and From friends with kids at London unis they do sign in the summer term.

I went to Durham and we signed up in February, managed to get two houses next door to each other too in the city centre viaduct area, as there was a larger group of us wanting to live together. It was always expensive though

Likewise in Scotland. Leases are not finite and only require 28 days' notice, so most accommodation becomes available towards the end of the academic year.

I'm not sure that it has anything to do with landlords being greedy. They don't gain financially by renting early. They will fo it to secure their business for the following year. Who wouldn't? The students are necessarily panicking either. They are being pragmatic because they know that if they don't secure accommodation for the following year they may end up with something less nice.

I was horrified when my children went to university. When I attended, back in the 80s, all first years were guaranteed a place in halls if they wanted it. Almost all were single rooms. A cleaner came round daily. There was food provided on a half board basis. You left home, but were basically looked after, all for a price that was covered by the grant, leaving a bit over for buying books and a few extras. After first year, most people were in flats, which you rented out for the university year and didn’t pay for over the long summer break.

By the time my children went, there didn’t seem to be much accommodation available at all. They all had to rush round estate agents, looking for flats, which had to be rented for the entire year, even though there were three months when they were not needed.

And the degrees they got at the end were barely worth the paper they were written on. My daughter more or less gave up in her last year as people who made no effort were still passing and the whole thing seemed both demoralizing and pointless. Whoever thought it was a good idea to expand university attendance, remove grants for less well-off students and turn universities into businesses with customers has done nobody any favours at all.

My DGD1 has been in purpose built but private student accommodation for all of her course at Uni. There was cheaper accommodation but hers is right beside her campus and has onsite security, a gym, dance studio and laundry and study lounge. She switched flats after her 1st year but still in the same building and this was a great introduction to life away from her rural home.

We went through the Bristol hell last year. My son and his friends had slim pickings and finally got somewhere in the Jan. Much later than most. They were told that landlords preferred girls and stem students. It was hideous.

Tbf no way in hell would I ever consider letting to a group of 4 boys
Mixed or all girls fine.
I remember well the state of houses rented by 4 boys, often rat infested with no floor to be seen.

Yes it is crazy early to find housemates..my DD has signed up for halls in her 2nd year..her and some friends are going to be in the same flat in private halls. It makes sense to me as her campus is in the city and so are the halls and all the places she socialises. If she wanted to rent a house she'd have to move out of the city and bus in and out.

Dd is waiting to get the date for booking next years halls (yr2). So I think her uni must wait till December She's hoping to get a studio next year, it's $600 a year more than the 8 room self catering flats in the same complex, so my fingers are crossed for her.
She's in catered this year in an 8 room flat and misses breakfast most days so money builds on her card and if she doesn't use it, it is lost. She'll be having lunch on campus often to use it up.

What do you want them to do, exactly?

Lots of universities and student unions already have very proactive face to face and social media campaigns to try and discourage students from renting too early because they end up dealing with all of the problems when things fall apart. The problem is that a lot of landlords are very good at creating fear about all of the good properties going, and unfortunately, a lot of students themselves help to perpetuate this idea.

Universities and student unions can only campaign and advise. They can't actually prevent students from signing contracts with private landlords.

Yep, DD has signed up today.

Last week she was having a wobble about poss dropping out, this week has signed up for a house of 6, each paying a £100 retainer to be replaced with a £400 deposit in June.

crazy bloody early, and I'm not sure even sure if she's going to be around for it. But they were all to terrified to wait - the house is a good one, and they felt pressured to sign for it as the agent took two calls about it whilst they were in the shop!

I started uni in 2008 and it was the same then - people started viewing in the January and it whips everyone else into a frenzy. I knew a few groups that ended up falling out after signing contracts, or someone dropping out etc

FWIW I found a random group to join up with in the March or April and we had no issues finding a house

Indeed my DS is a mixed group but they are Art based courses (and one STEM) going into 2nd year (although the 2 boys are 3rd years as dis foundation years but elsewhere).
They are a quiet group, my DS is teetotal and their private halls flat is immaculately kept. But on paper they don't look like a good bet.
The covering letter he wrote was fabulous and so now he is sending it to each application he makes to see if it helps. Its so hard at 18/19 to go through. I am taking multiple calls a day to provide support and reassurance. It's hard work for them.

@MrsBennetsPoorNerves Students don’t have contact with landlords. All landlords do is advertise a property via an agent. How do landlords create fear? Cannot say I’ve seen this when DCs were at uni. It’s their business and their choice though. Generally the well located nice flats go first and the students know this. Party flats and those out of the desirable areas hang around. It wax always like this.

Do we really want to go back to 10% going to uni? Are we really saying 3/4 should nit go because it was better in the good old days? We do have too many unis and too many degrees but the grad tax is fair enough snd the worse off gef full loans and bursaries. Many single parents reduce working hours to 16 a week to ensure DC qualify.