Festina lente in renting your ideal home
Searching for a room in a big city like London can be challenging when you consider the size of the city. It seems like there are a lot more people looking for a home than rooms available on the market therefore the demand is so high, that rooms go in a blink of an eye. To make this room hunt process a bit easier, below we created a list what the important aspects to consider.
What are your preferences based on the budget, location & conditions?
Make sure you know what you are looking for before you start you search. Know what requirements or aspects are important for you in a room and what it takes to make you feel comfortable and at home. You will be spending quite some time there so you might want to figure out what suits you. Decide which area you want to live in, consider the distance/ location between work and your home, how long are you willing to travel or would you rather be able to walk to work daily. What is the budget for your accommodation? All these things are to be considered to make it easier for you to find the right accommodation.
2. Start you search, select 2-5 rooms and book viewings!
Online search on different rental platforms is the place to start you room hunt, nowadays the technology allows us to connect and discover what we are looking for. With the options on different websites you can filter out your preferences and this will help you save time in you journey to find a new home. While exploring you options make sure you have all the information about the room, the property, and with the housing prices in London being as high as they are also the extra cost like council tax or utility bills, to not be disappointed later in the process. Eventually you will pick out a few of the rooms that fancy you, the next step is to arrange a viewing and take a took in real life, see how you feel about it, look around and explore the neighbourhood. It is very important the feedback received as it reflects the quality of the “customer service” received during your stay.
3. References and documents required
First of all before moving to London you need to be aware about the visa requirements to ensure you have to right to rent, work or study in the UK. Except for people with a UK or EU passport. To be prepared for when you have found your new place to call home, you need some documents to proceed and secure your room. The documents that are needed are:
Proof of identity
Visa (If it is required)
Work contract/ Letter of employer
Bank statements
Previous landlord references
Guarantor (If it is required)
4. Contract & keys
Now that everything is agreed upon, its time set up an agreement, read it carefully and understands your rights and responsibilities. If this is all set the contract can be signed and the first rental should be paid along with the deposit and other admin fees required.
Ps: Don't calculate your monthly rent x 4 but the price/w * 52 weeks/ 12 months
