Residential Lettings and Management

Student Guide

Viewing

Either with the existing Students direct or accompanied by one of us, which ever is the mutually convenient option and remember – early viewings avoid disappointment, as most of our houses were let by February of last Academic year. For contact details and additional information, please see further detail below.

Rent

Rent is quoted on a weekly basis (the preferred Student method), although it is calculated and paid on a per calendar monthly basis (£weeks rent x 52 weeks and divided by 12 months). In general we accept post dated rental cheques, which are normally dated for the 28th day of each respective calendar month, in order to clear for the first day of the month and calendar monthly thereafter. Rent is payable for 10 months from September - June (inclusive), with half rent paid over the summer months of July and August, which means you can fully occupy your chosen property during the Summer if you so wish.

Prices this year are based on the University recommendation of approx £55 - £65.00 per week Exclusive, with an £8.00 premium to pay for the Inclusive Utilities element only (i.e this recommendation does not include the broadband and TV licence, which we also include).

From experience, properties quoted much lower than this always involve some sort of compromise, such as location, standard of the accommodation, heating, furniture quality, lack of broadband and TV licence and so on; so the moral to this is to be careful when perusing various lists as more often than not, all is not quite what it seems!

Deposit

The equivalent of a months rent and is fully refundable immediately after the end of the contract, subject to there being no damage or rent arrears. We accept fair wear and tear and minor breakages and in fact very rarely make any deductions. Please note, we fully comply with the new Tenancy Deposit Legislation which came into force on 6 April 2007; having chosen The Tenancy Deposit Scheme as our compliance provider. They can be contacted on www.tds.gb.com or 0845 226 7837. Alternatively you can find out more information from www.direct.gov.uk/tenancydeposit or telephone 0845 609 0696.

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Parental Guarantees

In light of the fact that Students effectively have no income, it is a requirement that either a Parent or Guardian signs a basic Guarantee. It is a simple document and in essence means that the Guarantor ‘indirectly’ has the same responsibilities as the Student themselves and will therefore act accordingly in the unlikely event that the Student fails to pay their rent or damages the property, less the amount of the held deposit. However, Guarantors are not responsible for any other Tenant.

Council Tax

All full-time students at University are exempt from Council Tax. However, in the event a Student leaves the University but stays in the house, that Student will become liable for the Council Tax for the entire house (usually with a 25% discount), on which basis, we do require any Tenant ceasing to be a Student to inform us immediately so that we can let the Council know.

The Contract

The letting contract is basically a standard Assured Shorthold Tenancy agreement under the Housing Act, although with some very minor modifications to reflect Student INCLUSIVE use and in addition, to comply with the requirements of the University of Gloucestershire - in particular, that rents are not “joint and several” i.e. Students (and their respective Guarantor) are not liable for any other Student.

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Insurance

All the properties are insured by the respective Landlords, although this cover does not extend to any of the personal possessions that a Student may bring. However, getting individual insurance is actually not straight forward, predominantly as we do not fit respective Bedroom doors with locks, unlike the University Halls of Residence. There are a number of reasons for this, including Safety aswell as the fact that the house may not be defined as being "shared". Inevitably, in the increasingly bureaucratic world that we live in, this has a number of potential implications, in particular, on the eligibility for one "shared" TV license.

It is understood therefore and so suggested that the cheapest form of insurance is for the respective Parent or Guardian to extend their own Household Insurance to cover Portable Possessions of either their Son or Daughter. There are of course additional benefits to this option, specifically that cover extends outside the Students house, in the event that anything is mislaid or damaged in transit, subject to the individual policy terms and conditions.

Safety

We take the safety of our Students and Tenants in general, very seriously and will take a dim view of any individual compromising this standard.

All our houses comply with the both the relevant Health and Safety Legislation (including the new HMO Regulations, where applicable, which came into force in April 2007) and University requirements. All the properties have electrically connected smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors and are comprehensively Safety tested on an annual basis resulting in both Electrical and Gas safety certificates being issued.

Please note: We do not allow the burning of candles or any incense and likewise, smoking is not allowed in any of the houses. Anyone burning a carpet, in any capacity, will be required to purchase a new one.

Maintenance

All of our houses have been the subject of considerable refurbishment and regular upgrading; furthermore they all are well maintained and thoroughly cleaned at the Tenancy commencement. However, in the event that there are any problems, please contact the office on 01242 261679 or 01242 580085 and we will endeavor to resolve the problem with immediate effect. However, in the event that the problem is identified as either neglect or ill treatment, the cost will be apportioned accordingly.

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Telephones

All the houses have an incoming telephone line, generally as a consequence of the provision of the Broadband connection. However, this will not allow normal outgoing calls, with the exception of 999 and certain Free Phone numbers.

TV License

All of the Houses are provided with a Television License (which also covers Students own TV's) and in most cases have only recently had a Digital (as opposed to Analogue) TV aerial fitted with a socket installed into each Bedroom.

Broadband Internet

We now provide all the houses with wireless, as opposed to a hard wired local area network, Broadband Internet, all running at up to 4GB, as part of the Inclusive rent package. In essence this means that either your laptop or desktop has to have a wireless LAN card fitted, which in the event that they don't, will require the individual to purchase one from any good computer retailer such as PC World along the Tewkesbury Road, here in Cheltenham. Of course the main benefit of the wireless technology is the ability to work anywhere in the house (or Garden for that matter), rather than being confined to one particular outlet, say in your Bedroom.

The big advantage of broadband of course, is that you can all use the service simultaneously (and concurrently the telephone), as the potential bandwidth is shared equally between the active users at any specific moment in time (i.e. those actually downloading at that millisecond).

Please note, we are unable to provide technical support in the event that an individual machine has problems, although to date we have had no reported problems.

Removal and Storage

We have negotiated preferential rates with "Safestore" (http://www.safestore.co.uk) who are a National Company with 90 Depots Nationwide, including Cheltenham (http://www.safestore.co.uk/storage/south_west/cheltenham/cheltenham.aspx). They have the experience and strength in depth to arrange an entire move or just Storage solutions, depending on individual requirements. They can also arrange preferential rates on van hire, if this is all you need.

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