Parents’ guide to student accommodation

So your son or daughter’s coming to Reading university? Congratulations! It’s a brilliant achievement and an exciting step, but like any big life event, university often whips up plenty of uncertainty for all involved. Turner can put you at ease when it comes to your accommodation options.

Reading University try to accommodate all first-year students in halls on campus but with rising student numbers in the past few years this has not always been the case.

Second and third-year students usually live in private accommodation and this is either shared houses (known as HMOs) or purpose-built student housing. It is also common, depending on availability, for third year students to return to halls for their final year. Whichever category your son or daughter fall into, we are here to help.

Do not be surprised if your son or daughter start talking to you about a house for their second year as early as October. This may seem ridiculously early having only started at university in September but it is fact that the majority of students secure their accommodation between October and the Christmas break. We do not encourage them to look too early as they could be forced to make a choice about who they want to share a house with before their friendships are established. However, the better houses in better locations go first and once students start talking about houses and deciding who they want to live with, this often starts a frenzy!

The strength of their friendships is important as our tenancies on whole houses are joint and several and this means that the students are jointly responsible for the property and the rent. We do also offer tenancies on single rooms for those that are not part of a group. We ask for guarantors for all student tenants to cover the rent and this is usually a parent. This is normal practice in the student accommodation industry. For further information on how the student letting process works please see our separate guidance tab: ‘student lettings process’.

For most students living in a shared house with friends is a wonderful experience but it can also be challenging. Our properties are well designed to try and alleviate the possible issues arising from living in a shared house. Even with the right housemates there may be occasions where they cannot agree on who does the washing up, how long the heating is on for, how noisy they are etc. We recognize that students are often not experienced in running a home and we are here to help as much as we can.

This can be a stressful time for parents who are often paying for the accommodation and taking on the responsibility. We are here to help and answer your questions and concerns. Our tenants have the benefit of our friendly staff in the office, a dedicated maintenance team for any problems that arise and an out of hours service for emergencies.

Additional benefits when choosing to live in a Turner student home:

We are family business open 5 days a week and respond to emergencies out of hours
We care about our tenants and treat them fairly and with respect. If there is a problem we are here to help and advise
We understand that our young student tenants are vulnerable and may not have been responsible for a house before
Our properties are safe and compliant and are thoroughly checked on a quarterly basis
We employ our own staff both in the office and for maintenance and construction

Want to be the first to hear about our upcoming student properties? Click on the Keep Me Informed button

Frequently Asked Questions

Why choose Turner?

Exceptional student and professional housing
No agency fees
Our professional management team gives a professional service. Choosing Turner Property gives you a better standard of living.

How do I arrange a viewing of a property?

Make an online viewing request or email us at [email protected]

I would like to see the tenancy documents before we sign up?

We would be very happy to send you a sample contract and answer any questions that you may have.

What does joint and several liability mean?

Joint and several liability means that both individually and jointly, all the tenants are responsible for paying the rent and for all other tenants’ responsibilities during the tenancy.

What do I do if I do not understand the tenancy agreement?

Do not sign the tenancy agreement if you do not understand it. Please email or telephone us with any questions that you may have or your guarantor may have.

When does student accommodation become available for next year?

Student accommodation will be made available from the 1st October, though we are happy to take enquiries from students earlier.

Who is a Guarantor? Why do student tenants need a Guarantor?

A guarantor is a person who agrees to pay the student rent if the student is unable to do so. A guarantor is usually the students’ parents or guardians.

Why do I need to be a Guarantor?

A student guarantor is a person who vouches to pay the students rent in a case where the student fails to do so. Unlike professional lettings where tenants are paid a salary and provide an employer reference or credit check, many student are reliant on their student loan. For this reason, students will need to be guaranteed by their parents or guardians. We request that guarantors indicated be UK residents, UK homeowners, and over the age of 25. For the tenancy agreement, guarantors are supposed to provide their copies of original identification documents and sign the required paperwork.