Bills, deposits and guarantors: what Lancaster student renters need to know

Most of the confusion about student renting is not about houses. It is about money, and specifically about three things that nobody explains properly before you are asked to sign something: the deposit, the guarantor, and what is actually included in the rent.

This is a plain explanation of how each one generally works in England. It is not legal advice, and your tenancy agreement is the thing that actually governs your situation, so read it and ask about anything you do not understand before you sign.

Deposits

A deposit is money you hand over at the start, held as security against damage or unpaid rent, and returned at the end if there is nothing to deduct for. It is not an extra fee and it is not the landlord's money.

In England, deposits taken on an assured shorthold tenancy have to be protected in a government approved tenancy deposit scheme, and you should be told which scheme within a set period after paying. Those rules exist precisely because deposits used to disappear. If nobody tells you which scheme your money is in, ask.

A few things worth knowing:

• Take photographs of every room when you move in, including anything already damaged, and keep them. Date stamped photos settle most disputes before they start.
• Go through the inventory properly rather than signing it on the doorstep. If something is already broken, it needs to be written down.
• Fair wear and tear is not damage. A carpet that has aged over a year is different from a carpet with a burn in it.
• If you disagree with a deduction at the end, the deposit scheme has a free dispute process. You do not have to just accept it.

There are also rules limiting what landlords and agents can charge tenants beyond rent and deposit. If you are asked to pay something that sounds like an admin fee, it is worth checking whether it is actually permitted.

Guarantors

A guarantor is someone who agrees to pay if you do not. For students this is usually a parent or another family member, because most students have no rental history and no regular income for a landlord to assess.

The part people miss is how far that promise can go. In a lot of student house shares the tenancy is joint, which means all of you are responsible for the whole rent rather than just your own share. If a guarantee is written against a joint tenancy, a guarantor can end up liable for more than one person's portion.

That is not a reason to panic. It is a reason to read the guarantee document rather than forwarding it to a parent to sign without looking. Specifically, look for:

• Whether the guarantee covers your share of the rent or the whole tenancy.
• How long it lasts, and whether it rolls over automatically if the tenancy is renewed.
• What else it covers besides rent, such as damage or costs.

If you do not have anyone who can act as guarantor, say so early rather than late. There are usually options, such as paying rent differently, and they are much easier to arrange before a group has committed to a house.

Bills included, and what it really means

Bills included is a genuinely useful arrangement, because it turns an unpredictable cost into a fixed one and removes the monthly argument about who owes what. But the phrase means different things in different houses.

Before you sign, find out exactly which of these are covered:

• Gas and electricity, and whether there is a usage cap. Some inclusive deals are capped, and you pay the difference above it.
• Water.
• Broadband, and what speed.
• TV Licence, which is a separate thing from broadband and is often not included.
• Contents insurance, which usually is not included and is worth having for your own things.

If bills are not included, the practical question is who takes responsibility for setting the accounts up and chasing everyone. It is worth deciding that as a group before you move in, rather than discovering in November that nobody did it.

Budgeting for the year

Rent is usually the biggest number but it is not the only one. When you are comparing houses, compare the whole cost of living there rather than the weekly rent alone.

• Travel. A house that is cheap but needs a bus twice a day costs more than it looks. Somewhere central may cost more in rent and less in getting about.
• Heating. An older, poorly insulated house can cost noticeably more to keep warm through a Lancaster winter.
• Deposit and any advance rent, which come as a lump at the start when you may also be paying for a summer let elsewhere.

That first point is why it is worth looking at the areas of Lancaster alongside the rent. A few pounds a week difference can be wiped out by a bus pass.

The short version

Read what you sign, photograph everything when you move in, know which deposit scheme holds your money, and make sure whoever acts as your guarantor has actually read what they are agreeing to. None of it is complicated. It just tends to be explained badly, usually at the point when you are being asked to decide quickly.

If you want a hand working out what a particular house would actually cost you over a year, get in touch. We would rather answer questions than have someone sign something they have not understood.