Comprehensive Guide to Renting a House in London
Accommodation is a significant aspect of moving to London, which can impact your mood, quality of life, and even your studies and career. There are several key considerations in the process of finding and booking a suitable house, including safety, budget, and rental platform. In this comprehensive guide, every key point about London rentals will be mentioned to help you find the right accommodation. We sincerely hope that you can find an ideal place to live.
Preparations Before Renting
Understand the Divisions of London Areas
London is divided into the City of London, Inner London and Outer London, with a total of 33 boroughs. The more common concept of London Zone 1 and Zone 2 is actually divided according to the area where the subway is charged. Zone 1, also regarded as central London, covers many areas in the City of London and Inner London. Here is the political, financial, technological, educational, and tourist centre of London. You will find the Houses of Parliament, Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, Oxford Street, and Bond Street in this area. Meanwhile, there are plenty of prestigious universities, such as UCL and KCL. Students studying at these institutions prefer to rent uhomes.com UCL accommodation and KCL accommodation close to the campus.
London Zone 2 has developed rapidly recently. Canary Wharf, the booming new financial district, Fulham, a place for the wealthy in West London, and Canada Water, a residential area, are all located in Zone 2.
Check the Safety
Some areas of London can be dangerous, especially at night, so it's essential to avoid those with high crime rates when choosing a house. Check the crime rate around your destination by filling in the postcode on the official website of the London Metropolitan Police.
Make a Budget Plan
It would be wise to consider the distance between the house and the school or workplace. Your company or university is generally located in Zone 1 or 2. Accordingly, the rent in these places is also significantly higher than in others. However, through uhomes.com, a leading marketplace for student accommodation, you can rent an affordable house in Zone 1 and 2 with all-inclusive utility bills and the highest cashback. For example, LSE students can easily find cheap LSE accommodation in SE1 with uhomes.com.
Search for Suitable Accommodation
House-hunting Methods
1. Search for information on various rental websites in the UK, like uhomes.com. Then, reserve a virtual room tour.
2. Consult a British real estate agent
Precautions for house viewing
No matter which of the 2 methods you choose, it’s advisable to view the house before booking it. Here are some key points for you:
1. Check the surrounding environment of the house before arranging a room tour, including the distance from nearby subway and bus stations and the convenient amenities nearby, like shops, supermarkets, restaurants, gyms, etc.
2. Check the security measures of the entire house, such as the security door, smoke detector, and fire alarm. In addition, we need to figure out whether the electrical appliances are ageing and who is responsible for maintaining the equipment when it is damaged.
3. Tenants who plan to share a house can ask roommates whether they have lived here for a long time. Living for long means that the house is suitable for them. You also need to know how the water, electricity, gas, and Council Tax are allocated. By the way, if you are a student, we recommend you rent student accommodation on uhomes.com, where all utility bills are included.
Book a House
Pay a Deposit
If you are satisfied with the house, you can consider settling on it and paying a holding fee in advance. In this way, your house is secured and others cannot rent it. It is normal to charge this fee. According to the regulations, the deposit amount cannot exceed one week's rent. However, if you pay the holding fee and then don't rent it, the money is non-refundable. If the problem is on the agent's side, the money will be refunded to you.
Sign the Contract
The contract is the most important thing in the house rental process. Ask for a contract before paying the deposit and read it carefully. After getting the contract, you should pay special attention to the following aspects:
1. The rental contract must be provided by a formal law firm. Those downloaded from the Internet or written casually by the landlord may not be legally binding. Once your rights are violated, you may not be able to protect yourself even if you find a lawyer.
2. You also need to focus on the contract length. Pay special attention to the Breaking Clause, and make it clear when you can move out.
3. We need to figure out how much the rent is and whether there are any additional fees.
Pay Deposits and Rent
This part is definitely the most concern for tenants and landlords. According to the laws of England and Wales, since 2007, all rental deposits have been required to join a Protection Scheme, which currently includes three institutions: The Deposit Protection Service (DPS), My Deposits, and the Tenancy Deposit Scheme (TDS).
Move-in
After making all these preliminary preparations, you can get the keys and move into your new home! On the day before move-in, the agent usually does an inventory check to check the condition of the house and takes a lot of photos.
Check-out
Generally, the landlord will require that everything be in the same condition as when you moved in, so cleaning the house becomes particularly important. You can hire a cleaning company to do a "Move-Out Clean", which will save a lot of effort and make it easier to meet the standards.
Conclusion
After reading the guide, we believe you have a clear understanding of the entire London rental process. Be careful at every step and avoid being tricked. We hope that everyone can find a warm and comfortable home in London.
