Where to look for student housing?

Finding accommodation for your first year of uni is usually pretty easy - you’ll likely live in halls of residence on campus. However, you’ll probably have to hunt for private accommodation for your second year. 

Living in a shared student house with your mates is great - you get to live with people you choose, and you can pick exactly where you live. But it also means you’ve got to go through the tricky process of house hunting - not to mention getting to grips with household bills (if they're not included in your rent)! 

All this can feel like a lot, which is why the team at UniHomes have put together this guide with everything you need about where to look for student housing. 

When should I start looking?

Knowing when to start your search for second-year accommodation can be challenging - it depends on where you are in the country and what kind of housing you’re looking for. There’s no real ‘right’ time to start looking for student housing.

That being said, you don’t want to leave till the last minute - this means there’ll be fewer properties to choose from, making the process way more stressful than it should be. As a general rule, the earliest you’ll want to start looking is around October time. Ideally, you should have your accommodation sorted by March at the latest.

Check out our blog, ‘When should you start looking for student accommodation?’, for more information.

Who should I live with?

One of the best parts of living in privately rented student housing is that you can choose who you live with, but this is easier said than done. You might immediately know exactly who you want to live with, or it might take you some time to decide. 

A good tip is to think about who will make a good housemate and who you’ll get along with. If you’re an extremely neat and tidy person, living with someone messy and disorganised might be a bad idea, even if they’re one of your closest friends. 

If you’re struggling with choosing housemates for your second year, have a look at our guide - ‘Can you choose who you live with at university?’. 

Where to find student housing?

When it comes to starting your search for student housing options, there are several places you can look. It depends on whether you’d prefer to go through a letting agency, deal directly with a landlord, or search for properties which already encompass all the utilities within the rent price!

Letting agencies

Local student-letting agencies can be a great place to start your search. Letting agents act as a middleman between you and the landlord. Although this gives you more security and should guarantee things will be done by the book, it can mean that costs are slightly higher as they might add on admin fees. We work with a range of highly reputable letting agents nationwide – checkout our website to see if they have any properties advertised near you. 

Landlords

You can always check with your university accommodation service if you want to rent directly from a landlord. They might have a database of accredited landlords in your student city.

Renting from a landlord means you’ll have direct contact with the property owner, but they might not be as easy to contact as a letting agent. When going directly to a landlord, you may also be responsible for setting up and managing your own bills – however, did you know that even if you found a house which wasn’t through UniHomes, we can still completely manage your utilities.

Online sites 

One of the easiest ways to search for next year’s accommodation is to look online. Property sites have a wide range of options from letting agents and landlords all in one place, making it simple to find your ideal student house! There are even sites that specialise in student accommodation with bills included, like UniHomes.

Find your perfect student property with UniHomes

If you’re looking for privately rented student accommodation, UniHomes should be at the top of your list. 

We have a comprehensive landlord and letting agent network with all–inclusive student properties in cities across the UK! It’s easy to search by number of bedrooms and location, so you can find a student house that’s a perfect fit for you and your housemates. 

Best of all, all the student properties on our site come with all bills included, so you won’t have to worry about setting up utility accounts or direct debits - our team will handle all that for you! Plus, your water and energy are uncapped to give you peace of mind about the price you’ll pay. 

Contact us today or check out what properties  are available in your student city to get started on your search for your 2024-25 student house!