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?

I'm not really talking about small, individual landlords. Most of the student properties where I live are owned by companies that also act as letting agents. They proactively target students when they first arrive, typically offering freebies such as pizza etc during freshers' week. They used to offer free beer as well but I think most, if not all, have stopped that now after repeated complaints from the uni. In exchange for the freebies, they get students to provide their email addresses and/or follow them on social media etc, and then they start putting out messages that perpetuate the idea that all of the good properties will go very quickly. It's all very carefully orchestrated.

@MrsBennetsPoorNerves Never encountered that as DDs were not going near these halls for y2. Nor were they able to get their uni hall room for y2 and didn’t want to even if the room was available to them. Companies might well do it because they know student lets are difficult to secure? You don’t have to give your email to anyone. Best not to engage. Also try and get uni owned accommodation for y1. Then you won’t get pestered.

There is an oversupply of student properties where I live, hence the competition to sign them up.

And yes, students don't have to give their email addresses to anyone, but they do, in their droves.

I am not talking about my own dc's experience here. I used to work in the field and had many meetings with letting agents to try to persuade them to take a step back.

@MrsBennetsPoorNerves The private halls still have accommodation available in late spring so I would take their pressure tactics with a pinch of salt. They're awful.

Oh, I don't believe any of it. There are plenty of properties still available where we live, even in the summer. My own dc is pretty clued up about this stuff because we've talked it through, but lots of students do buy it and rush in to contracts with people that they have only just met.

When I was at uni you didn't have to decide until the summer term.

Yes the whole system is terrible. I was lucky enough that we were all encouraged to stay in halls all three years and it was great. No responsibility and cheaper than it would have been to rent a house. Which would not have been as nice as where we were.

The LL don't get interest on the deposit, and it seems the rentor doesn't either. Who on warth might get it then? The deposit scheme itself has costs to be covered, administrators and other staff. that's where the income from your child's money goes. Way to go Blair, a lovely layer of bureaucracy entirely paid for by the young people you forced into Uni, paying thousands for yhe privilege. And the vile Blair also ensured that your kid couldn't do a degree with the OU, by forcing them to put their prices up in line with all bricks and mortar Unis as too many poorer families were opting for the OU.

So here we are. poorer families beggaring themselves because degrees are universally expensive with accommodation and maintenance (eg food) on top, all because that man thought "50% of the population" should have degrees. Nevermind that he could have strengthened apprenticeships and other training instead, and achieved a more useful educated population that way. no, the silly man decided to completely devalue the degree so that to get a job you need post grad as well ....

Sorry, my contempt is showing

It's not just Uni housing. It extends to "normal" housing in Uni towns like York. My son got a job in York and couldn't find a flat to rent and he started looking 6 months before his job started. Some of his colleagues are still living in hostels because there are no flats to rent, not even for workers, let alone students. That's why students have to get themselves signed up so early - there's such a shortage that they'll probably not find anywhere to live if they don't. In York, some junior doctors on work placements at the hospital are having to pay mega money to live in holiday flats because they can't find residential lettings. That's the reality of the housing shortage, not just a Uni housing shortage. I genuinely don't think people realise how bad our housing shortage really is - we've too many people and not enough homes!

This problem nearly made my DD give up university. Before Xmas in her first year She was left out of a group of six as there were 7 in her flat in halls and 2 decided that My DD would be left out the rest followed the other 2 as scared they would be left out. of the 3 yrs at uni this was the most stressful time. After much stress she found her people and shared with them the next 2 yes and 8 yrs later are still her friends. To be fair it worked out better as it all went tits up for the other 6 by the time they were due to move in 3 were not talking to the other 3 but had to move in as deposits had been paid. .

Bristol is notorious for its housing shortages - not just for students, for everyone - and it has been for a while, well over a decade. Durham, Manchester and York are also known to be tricky.

It's obviously too late for your son, but I would encourage all prospective students to include accommodation availability as part of their decision when deciding university choices. It's not the most exciting thing to consider but it makes a big difference to the overall quality of the student experience. And if there are problems they will often be well documented.

My DDs both had interesting experiences with uni accomodation...

Dd21... First year halls, had a good floor, lots of friends... 2nd year houseshare with 4 of them. 2 turned out to be lazy, unclean etc. 3rd year was meant to be placement, but she cancelled, so had to find somewhere with no notice. Got a share with 3 men she didn't know who are doing masters, so always studying. She loves the whole set up.

Dd23... First year break up with live-in BF just before course started (6 weeks). Got a last minute place in a house share from a drop-out. Now living 3rd year in a row with the same women.

Random facebook house share groups have proved best for both my daughters.

@Badbadbunny Obviously in some uni towns there’s over supply. Popular cities are different but where do we build? We are a nation of nimbys.

@jux Do you really think a prime minister says something and everyone follows like lemmings? People go to uni because they believe a degree is worthwhile and cost effective. Of course the only degree that’s worth it for all grads is medicine. The IFS has good research on which degrees and unis are worth it. Not a single person is forced to go to uni. No one was forced to go.

You might like to know it was the Conservatives who expanded the uni sector in 1992. The post 92 group of unis were named due to this expansion. The numbers going to uni now also include many adults and adults on apprentice degrees. It’s not 50% of school leavers. Every single young person should weigh up what’s best for them. We also decided nearly every healthcare professional should have a degree so nursing, OT, physiotherapy should be degrees. Then add in social workers, teachers, and just about any job that used to be a diploma you have huge growth in the uni sector. These are large numbers, but due to the uni sector getting bigger in 1992, we decided to fill it up! Then in 2013 the cap on uni enrolments was lifted. A conservative government! Nothing to do with Tony Blair.

I don’t see anything wrong with raising aspiration, trying to improve social mobility and having a highly qualified workforce but we now need to swap full time degrees into part time ones with work.

My DCs went to university in the US where dorms are the norm, though off campus housing also exists. It's a much better system.

Don't they have to share a room with a stranger though? Alot of people would really hate that.

I remember thinking the same when I was at uni 13 years ago. I think we started looking around January time and thought that was early! It's because it's so competitive and not enough decent rentals. We were late finding somewhere and ended up in a right hole!

This happened to me

Had to sort out housing in the January she started showing her true colours in like May time just before the long summer holiday. But too late to really back out of anything

That is nuts. How do they know they are not going to drop out or even fail 1st year and not go back. In Scotland as far as I know, they start looking for 2nd year flat in late spring. Landlords don't dictate like that. How do landlords know whether their flat will be free. The students might want to stay if they are happy. Or the kids might decide to come home and commute if possible. They don't really make that decision till towards the end if first year.

I also have a student DS in Bristol and it has been VERY difficult for him and his friends to find a house for their 2nd year. In the end, they were trying to put down hefty deposits for houses they hadn't even seen! Rents are extortionate and supply nowhere near meets demand. My son was lucky to get a place in halls for his first year, but knew other first years who had to live in Cardiff and commute. Horrible experience all round and far from my own experience at university.

It may be nuts, but it's the reality of too many people chasing too few properties. If year 1 students wish to stay in the same place for year 2, they have to commit, otherwise the landlord will let it to someone else.

But how would they even know in November, who they wanted to share with and if they were even doing a second year. It is still nuts to be making that decision in November.

It is nuts, but it's what they have to do. If they don't others will sweep in and sign up for the properties, leaving them with few choices, usually either the naffest places or the most expensive. If you want something decent for a reasonable price, you have to get on in there and commit, or you'll be left behind. It's the reality of high demand and not enough supply!

When I was at uni we didn't need to decide until after Christmas.
I hated living in halls and used to go home every weekend.
One weekend, when I returned, all of the other 5 people in my hall had sorted a 5 bedroom house for them to live in so there wasn't any room left for me.
I went to the housing officer to ask if they had any 1 bedroom places and they asked if I would consider living with a family instead. (Mum, two teenage son's plus one other student who had lived there for 2 years).
I went and saw the house and met the family and decided to live with them.
It was so much nicer than living with students. I was definitely a lot happier.

Yes, but you get a chance to express some preferences when you apply for housing. You can soecify morning person or night owl, studying habits, level of cleanliness you expect, whether you're ok with friends socialising in the shared room, etc. You can also contact your future roomie when the room assignments are made, and even meet up to chat. My DDs all managed to get in touch with roommates and decode on who was bringing what equipment and appliances to the room, what sort of rug they would buy, etc.

In the first two weeks of the semester you can request a move if it looks as if the two of you won't be able to make a go of it.

This can sometimes work out well but you're taking a chance. DS moved out once, and it was a case of moving from frying pan to fire. My DDs have all made the most of it.

There's nothing wrong with living with a stranger per se. They're only strangers for a day or so - nothing beats sharing a dorm room as a way to get to know someone fast. It's also a great way of finding your inner assertive self, so in some ways a valuable element of your education.

@mathanxiety The Brits have an aversion to sharing unless they have been to boarding school. It’s a class thing! Many students won’t even share a bathroom! That’s the reason there are no dorms!