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  • Student accomodation

    We took son No1 up to uni last Friday. He's going early to 'look for work', and also be there ready for the resit he's got to take. He and 2 mates had signed a contract on a student house, but the other 2 aren't going up until later. As its quite a drive, and they could fit me among the boxes, I went as well, to see what he's getting, and spend a bit of time looking around up there.
    He picked up the key and was asked to do a main inventory of the communal areas. The other 2 bedrooms are locked until his mates get there.
    I didn't expect a palace, but walking into the kitchen my shoes stuck to the floor, the grill pan hadn't been washed since it was last used, and there were food spots on the sides and shelves of the fridge. The toilet upstairs was a disgrace, hair in the plugholes and the handle part of the hot tap in the bathroom was missing! We went back and told them about it. Supposedly professional cleaners had been in to clean, and then their staff had been in to check it out! Yeah, right!
    The cleaner came back, and tried to tell me things were a lot better than in most student houses once they had moved in a few weeks. I ask you, how can you expect them to keep the place clean if it's dirty in the first place? Definitely sends the wrong message, AND it was his job to clean it properly anyway.
    Then we found there was no modem/router in the bedroom for the Internet connection. We were told he'd have to buy one from them for £20, despite the welcome pack stating clearly there should be one in the room. The chap in the office said all new tenants had received a notification to the contrary. My son did not remember seeing it, but he might have forgot. Anyway, as this was the 3rd person we'd seen, I came the heavy parent bit, complained again about the cleanliness of the house, the misleading wording etc, and he gave us the bit of kit for free.
    Another point that irritated me was the fact that they had obviously given some parts a lick of paint, but no care had been taken to go around such things as toilet roll holders and towel rails. They were smeared and splashed with paint, paint spots on the floor, and in the bath!
    For approx £900 a month they get all bills and furnishings, such as they are. (Double bed that was 4ft me and OH were very snug for 4 nights, while son slept on the settee.) An unfurnished 3 bed is in the region of £400, so for the extra £500 per month it doesn't seem unreasonable to expect some degree of professionalism.
    On the plus side, we fitted in a visit to Harlow Carr but the rain put paid to some other planned garden visits. Then it took us 12 hours to get home yesterday because of problems on the M25 at the Dartford crossing!.
    Last edited by BarleySugar; 13-08-2008, 01:08 PM.
    I could not live without a garden, it is my place to unwind and recover, to marvel at the power of all growing things, even weeds!
    Now a little Shrinking Violet.

    http://potagerplot.blogspot.com/

  • #2
    Hi BarelySugar

    It sounds like the Landlord's expecting the Young Ones. Did your son view the house before he excepted it?
    Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.

    Michael Pollan

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    • #3
      Oh dear I fear you're somewhat out of touch...

      The key thing about student accommodation is that its at the centre of the world and the hub whats going on. Being close to eveyone else and sharing the experince is the key thing I took from University and it just wouldn't have been the same without halls of accomodation and such. Ultimately thats the only thing that matters and its (probably) worth the extra cash over private tennancy. I doubt your son minds the grubbiness and as for the paint quality/splashes I'd be amazed if he noticed! Don't worry he'll live despite the level of hygene and as for a four foot bed thats FAR too big and will only encourage innaproprate behaviour... I mean you could get three of four in there!

      Sadly part of being a student is about getting ripped off but its making the most of every moment that counts. I hope your son can manage his work life balance to maximise his enjoyment and gains friends and memories forever (as well as a decent degree of course). I left Uni eight years ago and had an amazing time. I met my now wife there and we both made friends so good we still all meet up in a big group every two months or so. If your son is as lucky as I was University won't be just life changing the aftermath will become his life. All the best!
      http://plot62.blogspot.com/

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      • #4
        Landlords try to rip off all tenants, not just students.
        I've got crafty over the years ... I take photographic evidence "before & after", and I don't pay my last month's rent, because otherwise you never get your deposit back. Things might have improved now the law's changed: your deposit has to go in a 3rd party bank account, so the landlord can't just keep it.

        I was once stung for £700 deposit for "cleaning" which never happened. Nothing I could do to get my money back once it was in Greedy Landlord's pocket. Letting agents are even worse, they charge £100+ for a £2 Experian credit check. I know they don't check your references, cos all mine were fake I wrote them myself.

        BTW, I am a fabulous tenant, and always leave the property cleaner than it was when I moved in.
        All gardeners know better than other gardeners." -- Chinese Proverb.

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        • #5
          I'll be honest with you I never had a good student accommodation (6 in total), and I'm sure there aren't any out there!!. The minute you say STUDENT it automatically takes you to a whole new section of grubby accommodation that is saved just for the purpose.

          You can complain, but it will not get you far, and I'm sure your son will get used to the sticky kitchen floor, it will help him to learn the 3 second rule (you have three second to get to what you ahve dropped, before the creepy crawlies, and germs do!!!). Is the £400 for the room, and an extra £500 for all bills and furnishings?, if so this sounds incredibly steep to me, somewhere around £140pw sounds more like the figure for london inclusive of bills to me, I did a quick search for this, which you could easily do to get a comparison.

          When I went to Cardiff for Uni many moons ago, the first place I stayed at was merely a transition home, so that I could find out where the best area to stay was, and then moved after about 6/8 weeks in. This may not seem very sensible to some, but you get a feel within the first couple of weeks where are the best pub are around you, and where your mates are, and that helps you ensure you get the most out of student life!!!

          On a serious note

          As its not your sons first year, I'm assuming he had already seen the house before he signed a contract, ask for a copy of the contract and ensure it has been cleaned properly, photograph the visible damages in the property for record, and write a letter to the landlord or agency, to ensure that if it is not thoroughly cleaned that you will ensure an outside contractor undertakes the work at his/her expense. You do sound like you are paying top whack for this.
          Last edited by Mikey; 13-08-2008, 02:49 PM.
          I'm only here cos I got on the wrong bus.

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          • #6
            Oh Barley Sugar, your poor son, i would be horrified about the lack of cleanliness, must have an OCD.

            I start Uni in Sept and my student accommodation is outstanding, the problem is the sharing, i have to share with OH and 3 kids, lol - its my home lol!

            I hope you son does well on his re-sit and that student life isnt too traumatic for you, let alone him x

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            • #7
              He was in halls the first year, and teamed up with 2 mates to get this house. It's let by a company specialising in student lets, and the price I quoted is for the 3 of them. As I said, I wasn't expecting a palace, but when a place is professionally cleaned, I would expect them to do the job properly.
              Another thing the agent said to me, which we need to remember, is that they usually bill everyone for cleaning at the end of the tenancy, regardless of how clean or dirty the place is, and many don't appeal, even if the place is clean! Another money maker from students!
              They did view the place when it was still occupied, and he reckons his mates didn't realise most of the stuff in there belonged to the students. He's making a list of all the things he's bought, or wheedled out of me for communal use, especially in the kitchen. He cooked us a roast dinner on Sunday, making a list of anything he still needed, like a veg knife, after almost cutting off his hand with the serrated one he had!
              He's really looking forward to being in the house, he kept doing the dishes while we were there, as soon as I'd swallowed the last of my tea he'd whisk away the cup, and he planned on hoovering and cleaning the bathroom the afternoon we left. I don't think it will last, he wasn't so particular at home, but he was planning a cleaning rota for the 3 of them, and is suggesting a communal money fund to buy stuff like loo rolls and cleaning stuff. He is a year older than the others, and I've a feeling he will be 'in charge'. The other lad sounds rather timid and happy to let others organise him, I'm not sure about the girl though!
              I could not live without a garden, it is my place to unwind and recover, to marvel at the power of all growing things, even weeds!
              Now a little Shrinking Violet.

              http://potagerplot.blogspot.com/

              Comment


              • #8
                Originally posted by BarleySugar View Post
                He's really looking forward to being in the house, he kept doing the dishes while we were there, as soon as I'd swallowed the last of my tea he'd whisk away the cup, and he planned on hoovering and cleaning the bathroom the afternoon we left. I don't think it will last, he wasn't so particular at home, but he was planning a cleaning rota for the 3 of them, and is suggesting a communal money fund to buy stuff like loo rolls and cleaning stuff.
                You're right - it won't last!

                Our student house was so cold that we wore more clothes going to bed than we did in the day, we had to go to campus and sneak into the showers because the hot water tank held a thimbleful of water. There were no outgoing calls on the 'phone - we had to use the call box across the street. On the plus side, we had good neighbours who took pity on us and bought us a gas heater and we had some great parties. Our house was always cleaner than most, but would probably horrify us now. Happy days

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                • #9
                  Hmmm, now my student accommodation wasn't classy, but the place WAS clean when I moved in and we were fined if the cleaners came round and found it in a disgusting mess (it had to be bad for that, but we had all basics and the oven was cleaned).

                  The cleaning rota is a good idea in principle, but it didn't work in my final year, when I lived with the most disgusting-but-lovely cows on the planet in student halls (hence I know all about the fine system - it was so bad me and two other flatmates kept our own dishes in our bedrooms!!).

                  My second year was in a private house that was pretty reasonable, actually. Shame about the bullies that lived there!!

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                  • #10
                    Things have changed big style in Leeds. Student accomodation used to be in scabby back to backs or huge rambling victorian terreces with dodgy landlords. Now it's all swanky flats (still with dodgy landlords tho!)

                    Me and my housemates (some years ago) made the front page of the student mag. We were having a party and were all jumping up and down to something dreadfull (tubthumping!) when the kitchen floor collapsed. Not just a broken floorboard... The whole floor caved in. (the loo on the floor above had been leaking for years!) Luckilly no one was hurt as the cellar was full of rotting matteresses ! The landlord threatened to sue us for criminal damage !!!

                    Ah those were the days... Don't worry about the mess. He'll be off his face most of the time anyway

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