In This Guide
Choosing an area
Getting in
Leaving
Lettings agents
Living
Looking for property
1. Introduction
2. Furnished v Unfurnished
3. Renting privately
4. Online search
5. Offline search
Renting introduction
Tenancy agreements
Viewing property
Looking for property
Introduction
If you're fussy, which most people tend to be when it comes to the type of home they want to live in, then trying to find a suitable property to rent can be a time-consuming and often frustrating task.
If you supply your details to an agent in advance of your search, most will not contact you until a few of weeks before you are due to move. That said, private landlords that do not rely on an agent are more prone to advance preparation and will often advertise their property a month or so before it becomes available. The advert should include the date on which the property is due to fall vacant.
In London, the best time to look for property is usually about three weeks before you wish to move in. Start looking any further in advance and you are probably wasting your time, unless you are just trying to get an idea of prices. Landlords are potentially losing rental income if they sign you up for a property too far in advance of the commencement of your agreement, and so will not usually do this. You should be able to find somewhere within a week if you get your act together and this still leaves a couple of weeks for referencing and so on.
Another bad time to look for property is when agents and landlords are likely to be busy. The Christmas period and those times when fresh graduates hit the capital and new students hit the towns can be frustrating times to find a home to rent.
Students should try to get accommodation sorted as early as possible before the new term. The good properties can go very quickly and some landlords may be inclined to put prices up rather than down as term draws near, especially if there a large number of as yet unhoused students.
You basically have the options of renting through a lettings agent and renting directly from the landlord of the property. Of course, you don't necessarily have to exclusively choose one or other whilst you are searching, but you hopefully will not end up renting from both, as that could get expensive. Renting from a landlord is different to renting from an agent and the search mechanisms are slightly different too. To find out more about renting privately click here, or to read more about renting from an agent follow this link.
As ever, you have choices in terms of the way you look for property. You can use a relocation service, do it all via your PC (a method we obviously endorse) or use a variety of other sources to find your property. Click here to find out more.
Act quickly. Especially in cities, rental accommodation can be snapped up in a matter of hours. If you are able to view a property immediately, don't waste any time. Arrange your viewing appointments as soon as you find a property you like the look or sound of. If you delay, you may find that it as been taken behind your back.
Some adverts will have the property price quoted weekly and others will have it monthly. Why not use our quick converter which helps you work out each individual's share of the rent on either on a weekly or monthly basis. Click here to use the calculator.
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