Student Accomodation

My roof is leaking AGAIN

Why is it that all landlords who offer student accomodation are a joke and try to make you move into houses made of lego?

This particular company is run by a couple of cowboys!

Student letting agency.

To be honest, i should have had more sense. Most students know them as 'Comedy Warehouse' for a reason.

I swear, our landlord must be a gift from the Gods. We can text him at about 10 at night saying something's wrong and he'll be round the next morning (after warning us) to check it out and make the necessary arrangements to fix it. It might be because I swear he fancies my housemate, but it suits us fine.

I hope next years are as good. The letting agency we went through had free sweets and tea on tap though, so they can't be bad... Right?

On the other end of the spectrum, my boyfriend's house is SO badly run. They've had mice for about six months and they've only just got people in to fix it, their boiler is constantly going and it's just generally a rank house.

Oh and my other friend (living in a house of 8 girls) had the lock break on their FRONT door. The letting agency refused to do anything about it, claiming it had to be their fault, so they had to sleep a night with the front door unlocked and then arrange for someone to come in and fix it. The person said it was just a poorly done lock and nothing to do with the girls living there and wrote a report to say so along with the bill, which they took into their letting agency... And had torn up infront of their faces, told that it wasn't anything to do with the agency.

So if you're ever in Cardiff, NEVER go with CPS or Horizon, for they are utterly sh*t.

And this is what I'm applying for right now...

Quote: thelostdude

And this is what I'm applying for right now...

For the most part, university halls are quite good. They university fix things anyway.

EDIT: I take it all back after reading the above comment

Quote: thelostdude

And this is what I'm applying for right now...

Halls are fun because even the sh*tty aspect of it all is shared amongst you all so you can all complain. Although, I love our maintenance people because they taught me how to break into other people's flats for fun. Scary people, actually. One looks like Kurt Cobain's zombie twin.

Quote: Junior_Minister

They university fix things anyway.

Quote: The_Educatedwombat

This is rather scary as I am looking forward to moving into a house in town next year- I'm utterly fed up of living on campus. Its too claustrophobic now.


My landlord is the university, as they own a HUUUGGEEE amount of the houses in town. Sadly, they don't own the nicer ones, oh well.

I wonder if LUSU are any good... Emma?

Don't be put off, Mark. You won't have problems with most letting agents at university.

Quote: girlpants

Quote: sammy_tsang

tennents and landlords are as bad as each other.

you should try being in the shoes of the tennents or landlords.

now you see why they are both c*nts.

Sammy, people here are in the shoes of the tennents!

As for landlords, My ex was a landlord for a while, I know exactly what things are like on the private individuals side, lack of cash can slow down repairs etc, however a professional letting firm, like those being discussed here have no excuse for lacklustre performance.

I have a question for you, have you ever lived in rented property at any point, that isn't part of a uni itself? (Since that means the standards should be a tad higher.)

I have never rented property. But I know what it's like. As in the past my mates rented. I'm going to try not to ever rent property. I see it as dead money. but each to their own.

Quote: sammy_tsang

Quote: girlpants

So aside form hearing your mates p*ss and moan, you really have no knowledge or experience to make your arguement from. Knowing someone who does something is not in anyway shape or form the same as having done something yourself.

And to be honest, second hand experience is about as good as none at all.

I have more experience as a landlord than tennent.
Some people really shouldn't be allowed to live in private housing and should just be on the council waiting list.

some people should not be allowed to own any type of housing. If they can't look after someone elses property what chance do they have of looking after their own.

if they own their own property, it takes them off socialised housing and therefore doesn't cost the state anything like what they would being in social housing. plus, if they own their property, they have the free will to keep it in any state they wish.

Christ- remember when everyone used to like Sammy?

Quote: Junior_Minister

Not wanting to rent property isn't really an option when you are at university or just starting out, Sammy. Most people's parents don't have £150k floating around to buy them a house.

Paulo how do you know how much money my parents have?
I was lucky in some parts of my life and not in other parts. for example: education and work has always been travelling distance.

Quote: The_Educatedwombat

Christ- remember when everyone used to like Sammy?

Different views, opinions and upbringing can divide people.

Quote: sammy_tsang

Quote: The_Educatedwombat

Christ- remember when everyone used to like Sammy?

Different views, opinions and upbringing can divide people.

thank you for that little pearl there Sammy. Ever the philosopher.

I have no idea how much money your parents have! £150k is probably what you would need to buy a terraced house these days, though. In fact, you would probably need more.

Oi oi oi! There's nothing wrong with Newcastle Personally, i'd avoid that bit of it like the plague, though.

Quote: girlpants

possibly, depends on the area. I know a few going for about 60k, but they are sh*t tips.

I've only ever seen a price tag of 60k once in Southampton and you're right at that price they are sh*t tips.

Quote: sammy_tsang

Quote: girlpants

Quote: sammy_tsang

Quote: girlpants

possibly, depends on the area. I know a few going for about 60k, but they are sh*t tips.

I've only ever seen a price tag of 60k once in Southampton and you're right at that price they are sh*t tips.

Spend some time up north, their are a fair few of them, since we don't have as many overinflated property prices as down south does.

I hear stories about parts of Manchester. A person can buy a whole street of housing???

Least no noisy neighbours...

As far as i'm aware, most major cities in the North had a scheme like this going in the late 1990's to the early 2000's, where you could buy a house (or a street's worth of houses) of run down houses off the council for the equivalent of £1 each as long you signed a contract to say that you would do at least £xx,xxx worth of renovation work.

I know of an estate in Salford where the council sold the alley in between back-to-back terraces to the owners, who collectively gated them and turned them into a communal garden, which single handedly eradicated the burgularly rate on the said street.

At least there's some sense in housing departments somewhere.