The student letting process

How to pick the right student home? Choosing the right property can be difficult, and that is why we believe breaking down the elements of what you want as a group is very important. Budget, utility bills, location and layout seem to drive most student enquiries; therefore, we have provided the following information to help you with your decision making:

Budget

Firstly, and most importantly, work out how much you and your potential housemates can realistically pay per month for a student home. Many students will have different budgets to work with. For this reason, remembering to include added extra costs, such as utility bills, will help you when making a final decision on the available budget you each have. Not many houses have the exact same room sizes, therefore if you have housemates that have different budgets, it may be worth splitting the rental amount according to the sizes of the bedrooms. Alternatively, some of our student properties include utility bills, so it may be worth making enquiries about those to help with your budgeting.

Bills

Generally, when letting a student home in Reading the utility bills aren’t included within the rental price. We estimate that the rough monthly cost to put aside for gas, electricity & water is approximately £50.00 per person. Nonetheless, we do try to include the internet in our houses, wherever possible, so our students have one less thing to worry about. Full-time students are exempt from council tax but you will need to prove your student status to the council before this is granted.

Our Hillside Court development for example has the following bills included: gas, water, electric, internet and communal TV license.
*Included utilities will be stated on our property advertisements*

Location

Many student properties are advertised as being just a stone’s throw away from Reading University. Please be aware however that the campus is very large with multiple entrances. It is worth thinking about where on campus your lectures are actually held and this may differ from your housemates.

Layout

Do you want a large open plan communal space? Double bedrooms maybe? These are some of the questions you need to ask yourself when looking for your student home. The advertisements you see of student houses will show them in the best light, with the pictures of the biggest room being showcased for example. Knowing the true layout of the house is important to know before arranging viewings. We provide floorplans of our houses to avoid you viewing houses that do not meet your groups requirements and expectations.

Frequently Asked Questions

Arranging a viewing

Once you have decided on your maximum group budget, ideal locations and preferred layouts then the next step is to book a viewing. You can either call our team on 0118 413 4130 or email us at [email protected].

Reserving a property

To reserve one of our properties you will be required to pay one week’s rent and sign a reservation receipt which outlines the financial and contractual obligations of the letting. Once you have made this payment, returned completed reservation and application forms, we will stop advertising the property.

Referencing

We require the following documents from both students and their guarantors if applicable to complete our referencing process:

Students

Student ID
Student enrolment letter / Student acceptance letter
Passport OR Driving License AND Birth Certificate

Guarantors

Guarantor’s Passport OR Driving License
Guarantor’s Utility Bill

Tenancy Agreement

Once you have submitted the documents required to pass the referencing process you will be asked to visit our office to sign the AST (Assured Shorthold Tenancy) for the property you have chosen to let. This document is available for review before your contract sign date if requested.

Balance Payment

Upon the contract signing you will be asked to pay the remaining balance which will equate to the first months rent, plus the deposit (which is calculated at 5 weeks of rent, minus the 1-week figure already paid to reserve the property).

In some cases, we will ask for a 6 months’ rent payment for students that are unable to provide a UK based guarantor. The 6 months’ rent paid prior to the commencement of the tenancy will be used for the last 6 months of the tenancy.

Check in & Inventories

Upon the commencement of your tenancy we will arrange a check in appointment where we will go through the inventory with you to agree on the condition of the property and the furniture provided. Please be aware that unless agreed with you in writing at the time of signing the tenancy, no improvements will be made to the property and the property is let ‘as seen’ at the time of the viewing. Please note also that some of the contents may belong to the current tenants living there when you view so make sure you understand what items are owned by the landlord and are included as part of the property. The property will be cleaned and any repairs carried out prior to you moving in as far as possible. However, there is often no gap in between the tenancies with students moving out on the 30th June and new students moving in on the 1st July. If the property requires further cleaning this would be carried out within two weeks of your tenancy commencing and we reserve the right to carry out non-essential repairs during the first 60 days of your tenancy.

"I’d like to thank you all at Turner Property on behalf of us all for your help throughout the last year, you were great landlords:)"

"I have really enjoyed living at 46 Redlands and appreciate the effort you have put in to keep the house at a high standard. I have rented from Turner Property for 4 years now in total (2 years student and 2 years HMO) and really appreciate your fair and reasonable attitude as a landlord."