House Hunting

Every city with students has a different time and method for finding student accommodation. It is estimated that in Bradford over 2,000 students will live in privately rented accommodation and most will be second and subsequent year students (returning students) like you.

In Bradford most students don't start looking for accommodation for the next academic year until after the official start date - this is 6 February 2012. This is the first date that Unipol shows its registered owners’ properties to you. However due to the large surplus of good quality accommodation it is not necessary that you rush out on this day to secure your house.

Take your time and look at a good selection of properties. Use the tips below to give your group the advantage and best chance of getting the best house for you. Using Unipol means that you get access to thousands of bed spaces advertised from 6 February 2012, displayed in a way that ensures transparency and no hidden bias.

Unipol is more than a letting agent, it is the focal point for advice and support for students looking for private rented accommodation. With the support of your student union and your university, rest assured that at Unipol you will be encouraged in to making the right decisions at the right time not pushed in to making hasty ones that you will regret later.

 The Website - www.unipol.org.uk/bradford

Details of properties available are centralised, updated regularly and are displayed in a way that allows you to search for what you want using various user friendly search engines. Detailed information and photographs allow for easy comparisons.

Owners voluntarily sign up to abide by a number of conditions that exceed current legal requirements, so you get more protection covering more areas. Although we hope that by renting from a Unipol Code owner you will have a trouble-free experience, there are no guarantees. Here's a simple guide on what to do if problems arise during the tenancy:

• Let the landlord/agent know what the problem is as soon as possible. If it's a repairing issue, do so in writing (an email would count) and keep a copy;
• Allow the landlord/agent a reasonable time to do something about the problem. The timings will depend on the nature of the problem, with serious risks to life and health taking priority;
• If the landlord/agent fails to respond to the correspondence, or is substantially slower than required, then make a formal complaint to Unipol using the appropriate form. Don't wait until the end of the tenancy to do so, otherwise it may be difficult for the complaints procedure to take these matters into account;

You can check whether a landlord has registered to be a Unipol Code owner for 2011/12 by clicking here. 

Student to Student Notice Board and Single Lets

If would prefer to house hunt alone or are looking for more members to join your group Unipol can help you. As there is a surplus of accommodation in Bradford some owners are happy to sign students for individual lets rather than requiring you to be in a group to sign for a joint contract. The owner's advert will state “will let individually” if this is possible. In addition you will be able to use the student to student notice board on the Unipol website. This is a great way to meet others to form a group to look for houses together, to advertise that you are looking for a room in a shared house and to see what others who have rooms in houses they have signed for have to offer.

Returning Students

The administrative start date of 6th February 2012 is there to:

• increase choice and transparency in the letting market;
• ensure that there is a decent amount of comparable property for you to choose between;

Some house hunting tips:

• Do not let the start date panic you into renting something you do not want. There is a surplus of accommodation in Bradford and good quality accommodation is available throughout the year.
• Do not rent before the start date unless you are staying with your existing landlord.

 Use the time prior to the start date to:

• work out who you want to live with;
• explore areas of Bradford to decide where you want to live;
• work out how much you can afford ( don’t forget gas, electricity, etc.);
• discuss what you want in the property;
• look into the legal aspects of renting – what are your landlord's responsibilities and what are yours.

Housing Myths and Rumors

Every year some students fall foul of various housing myths and rumors such as:

• There is a housing shortage – This is simply not true. In Bradford there is a surplus of good quality accommodation. Students who leave their house hunting until the summer before they return to University still secure good houses.
• All the best places go first – Often students that sign up for houses too early are actually signing for properties left over from the previous year! Wait for the official house hunting start date when thousands of bed spaces are released on to the Unipol website for students to view.
• Everyone pays sign up fees – Many owners do not ask students to pay admin or sign up fees, if you don’t want to pay choose an owner who doesn’t charge them.  Ask what you are paying for.