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How to make moving out of your student house stress free. By Simon Thompson |
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Moving out of your student house can seem like a stressful process. Whether you’re moving to another property or are at the end of your university career, there are a few steps that you can take to make the big move that bit less chaotic. Then you can focus on enjoying the last few weeks with your housemates before the summer arrives!
Maintaining good communication with your Landlord
Hopefully you will have been in regular contact with you landlord throughout the year, but now is the key time to make sure that you are both on the same page. Get all your rent paid on time, sort your bills and ensure all financial lose ends are dealt with before you vacate the property. It’s also worth having a quick meeting with your landlord a couple of weeks before you leave to run through exactly what they expect of you and how they want the property to be left. This way, you are less likely to face the dreaded deposit drama that often comes from simple misunderstandings.
Arranging a move out date
Adhering to the advice above, arranging a move-out date with your landlord is very important. It will help you to plan when you will clean your room and the house with your housemates. As tempting as it might be to say yes to every night out, leaving yourself time to properly clear out and clean everything will serve you well in the long run. Plus, a break from the boozing never did anyone any harm!
Take pictures
Ideally, as soon as you moved into the property you will have taken pictures of each room, especially if there were any bits of damage that needed to be noted on the inventory. Whilst having an inventory with your landlord is extremely useful, always try and make sure you take pictures as well, just in case anything gets missed in the walkaround.
If you have told your landlord about any damages and they haven’t fixed them by the time you’ve moved out, take pictures of those as well. Combined with written evidence (emails or text messages) you will then be able to prove that you took every precaution to ensure the property was returned to the landlord in the best possible condition. If you don’t have any outstanding damages in your house then it’s still worth taking pictures anyway. If the landlord comes back to you after you’ve moved out demanding fees for cleaning or repairs that you feel are unfair, you will have photos to back you up.
Inform your landlord of any damages before you leave
It can be tempting to leave things that aren’t urgent to fix (like carpet rips, door handles) but it is very important that you let your landlord know about any mishaps in the house before you leave. Preferably give them a week or two before your move-out date to fix the problem, as you can then argue that you gave them a reasonable amount of time to fix the problem.
Damages/repairs that fall under the responsibility of the landlord include: the structure and interior of the property; electrical wiring; water tanks; boilers; radiators; showers; baths; sinks; pipework and toilets.
Damage/repairs that are your responsibility to solve are: lightbulbs; dripping taps; bleeding radiators and changing a fuse.
Sorting all of these little niggly bits will help to prevent you being charged for repairs from your deposit.
Clean the house (thoroughly)!
No one is expecting the house to be as new when you leave. In fact, legally you are entitled to fair wear and tear from living in a property for a year. However, this does not mean that you should go lax on the cleaning now you’re on the final hurdle. Any mess from the hob, dirty dishes, hairy plugholes and dust needs to go. Mop the floors and clear your walls of any blue tack because these are key things that students face deductions from their deposits for every year. As mentioned, the house does not need to be perfect. In fact, chances are that your student house was far from perfection when you moved in. Just make sure that it’s as clean as you can possibly make it and is liveable for the next tenants.
Don’t leave anything behind.
Like giving the house a good spring clean, make sure that you remove
everything from the property after you’ve left. And we mean everything. There are horror stories of students losing parts of their deposits for leaving loo roll behind (even though, let’s face it,
that’s very helpful for the next tenants…). Most landlords won’t be this petty but it’s better to save your skin than pay for it later.
Deposit – if it all goes wrong.
If the worst-case scenario arises and you don’t get all your deposit back, you are entitled to challenge this. If at the end of your tenancy there is a dispute about the return of your deposit, then you can use the dispute resolution service provided by the tenancy deposit scheme your landlord has used to protect the scheme. For further advice, read this dispute guide.
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The 10 Best Student Eats around Manchester |
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By Elizabeth Whittingham
For students who have made the unfortunate mistake of not packing a lunch from home before heading out the door to lectures, it can be tricky to find affordable yet still delicious food on the go.
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How to Survive Fresher’s Week |
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By Elizabeth Whittingham
accept your Fresher’s Flu fate
Happy Fresher’s Week! Here are some tips and tricks to surviving the madness.
-Firstly, be yourself. Although the pull to make new friends and share new experiences is strong, make sure th |
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Is this the poshest student yet? |
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By Elizabeth Whittingham
12 members of staff?
If you thought Prince Harry’s room was a little bit extra, then you’ve seen nothing yet.
A fresher at the University of St Andrews is hiring twelve servants to assist her throughout everyday student |
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Fresher's Got You Down? Try Out These Hangover Cures! |
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By Elizabeth Whittingham
just loads of water
If, like most freshers, you’ve started at university and are therefore partying non-stop-you’re probably experiencing the mother of all hangovers right this minute.
After t |
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How to Get Free or Relatively Cheap Food |
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Free food for all
By Elizabeth Whittingham
There is a viral sensation sweeping the web; YouTubers and celebrities are attempting to use just one pound a day for their food.
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The Worst University Reputations in the UK |
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By Elizabeth Whittingham
Let’s spill the tea…
The worst on class equality
The University of Cambridge, University of Oxford, University of Edinburgh
There are plenty of universities who have com |
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Fit in these weekend getaways before university begins |
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Toy towns and chocolate box villages
By Elizabeth Whittingham
Ever wondered where the best place to holiday in the UK is?
Don’t worry, Vogue have compiled a list detailing all the best places to travel to, meaning that you don’t have to |
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The UK is ‘missing out’ on International Students |
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By Elizabeth Whittingham
According to a new study, it seems apparent that the UK is missing out massively on international student applications due to strict UK VISA regulations.
University leaders are calling for the VISA system to be changed in order to allow |
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Stormzy is paying for two Black students to attend Cambridge |
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By Elizabeth Whittingham
In the wake of A Level result’s day, grime artist Stormzy has unveiled his plans to pay for two Black students to head to Cambridge University for the start of the academic year.
Stormzy will pay for everything, including all tuition and |
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The subjects with the highest IQs |
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By Elizabeth Whittingham
It’s time to settle the debate.
Science students are smarter that Arts students. At least, that’s according to data recently released by ETS. They tested 26,000 students across every degree subject known to mank |
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Your University Checklist |
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By Elizabeth Whittingham
Starting university September? A little overwhelmed by the endless tips, advice and checklists floating around the internet?
Don’t worry, here’s a no-nonsense guide to preparing for university, from sorting |
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