Living in private sector accommodation

• To pay the deposit and any advance rent promptly.
• To provide full details of all the tenants – name, institution, course, home and email address, home and mobile telephone number and next of kin.
• To carefully check and sign your agreement and the inventory of the property within the first 7 days of the tenancy. Report any inaccuracies or discrepancies in writing to the landlord or agent within this timescale. 
• To report any repairs or outstanding items required when you move in as soon as possible so that they can be attended to.
• To apply online for exemption from Council Tax if applicable or (but only if requested), supply an exemption certificate(s) to the landlord. 
• It is strongly recommended that you take out appropriate possessions insurance. Check first whether you are covered by your parent or guardian’s contents insurance.
• There should be a calendar in your property detailing waste and recycling collection times by week. If you do not have one, email the council streetenvironment.campaigns@york.gov.uk quoting your full address and they will provide a new copy free of charge.

• To behave in a reasonable manner, with consideration for neighbours, landlords/agents.
• To be responsible for the behaviour of any visitors to the property.
• To not cause any disturbance in the community you live in, particularly before 7am and after 11pm.
• To discuss any proposed changes of tenancy with the landlord and obtain their agreement prior to making any changes. 
• To pay the rent promptly. In the event of genuine difficulties, you should discuss the problem with the landlord as soon as possible.
• To report repairs to the landlord/agent promptly in writing (email is fine) and allow access for inspection, repairs and viewings.
• To take care of the property, its furniture and equipment, and pay if necessary for any items damaged accidentally or otherwise.
• To make use of any security measures provided.
• To use fire detection and protection equipment responsibly, only for the purpose intended and only if safe to do so.
• To keep the property adequately ventilated and heated to reduce risk of mould / damp from condensation. Ventilate the kitchen and bathroom when in use. Keep rooms well heated and ventilated where clothes are being dried. Further advice on Damp and Mould.

• Take any final meter readings for gas and / or electricity
• Cancel any broadband accounts
• Change your address for necessary documents and forwarding accounts
• Take photographs of your room and the common areas of the house (this is to support getting your deposit back).
• Leave property in the same clean/tidy condition as it was at start of tenancy.
• You should all leave the property and return all your sets of keys by the agreed date.
• If you will leave the property before the waste collection day, contact your landlord to discuss possible assistance with rubbish removal. They may be able to take rubbish to the household waste site on your behalf. Alternatively, contact City of York Council Contact Centre for advice: Tel +44 (0)1904 551551.

Your landlord will likely provide you with final communications or a check-out list of items that need to be completed when handing in your keys.

During Semester 1 and Semester 2, we will be holding housing drop in sessions at The Baroness Hale Legal Clinic next to the Information Centre. This will include services where you can have your accommodation contract checked over by a Law School student or one of the housing advisors on site. To help you read through your tenancy agreement and make sure it’s right for you, you can use our helpful Tenancy agreement checking guide (PDF , 341kb) as well.

If there is a problem with the property, you need to inform your landlord or letting agent immediately. Take photos of the problem and keep a record of communications such as emails, letters, and maintaining notes of phone calls. The action your landlord or agent takes and how quickly the situation is addressed will depend on the severity of the problem.

If you and your housemates are struggling to get along, your College teams can help with housemate mediation, if that is something you feel might be helpful in getting everybody onto the same page. Contact your respective college for further information. This mediation could help you to come together as a group, and decide in a controlled environment what the best situation will be moving forward, whether that is to all live together, one of you leave, or a number of other scenarios, and agree as a group.

If your neighbours are causing problems, you can get advice from: 

• Student Advice Team
• City of York Council Mediation Service
• City of York Council noise complaints
• North Yorkshire Police (non-emergency phone: 101)

Show consideration for your neighbours: 

• If you plan to have a social event which could become noisy, let your neighbours know in advance and end the event at a reasonable time.
• Put your rubbish or recycling out by the kerb on the correct day and don't forget to bring your emptied bin and boxes back in. If you miss your collection day, or have extra rubbish and recycling, you can take it to Hazel Court Household Waste Recycling Centre. 
• Make sure you park both considerably and legally. 

We take misconduct in the community very seriously and repeat offenders may find themselves facing disciplinary action under Regulation 7.

If you pay an advanced payment when booking your accommodation, this will be deducted from your first rent payment. If you pay a security deposit, this secures your accommodation booking and once you move into the property it converts into a damage deposit. This will then help cover any costs for broken or damaged items at the end of your tenancy if there is any, otherwise the full/remaining amount will be returned to you once you move out. The timeline of this and where the deposit is held will be written into your tenancy agreement.

If you are on an individual tenancy, you are only responsible to pay for your own rent. However if you are on a joint tenancy, or anyone else is named on your contract, then anyone named is responsible for the payment. Therefore if one person refuses to pay, everyone in the property named on the contract must cover the owed amount. Therefore it is really important to ensure you all have trusted guarantors and people you wish to rent with. If in any doubt, always check your tenancy agreement.

If you are a full time registered student, you are exempt from paying council tax. This is not automatic and you will need to apply for a council tax exemption so you don’t receive a council tax bill. Even if you are living in a shared house, you will all need to individually apply to be exempt. You can find out further information on council tax exemptions here.

Most purpose built student accommodation (PBSA’S) and some letting agents will offer bills included within the rent, however it is more common for shared private houses to not have bills included. You will need to check the accommodation advert and your tenancy agreement to see if you have to pay bills separately.

A TV licence is required if you watch any live TV or BBC iPlayer. Note, TV licences are backdated to the beginning of the month.

If you are caught watching live TV on any device without a licence, fines can be up to £1,000.

If you are sharing your house as a part of a joint tenancy, then you will only need one TV licence for the entire property. If you each have individual tenancy contracts and you wish to watch live-streamed TV (whether on a TV, computer or phone) you will each have to pay for your own TV licence.

If you live with your landlord in the same property, you will need a licence to watch live TV in your own room.

Find out about Students and the TV licence.

The main things you will need to set up:

• Gas
• Electricity
• Water
• Council Tax Exemption
• TV Licence 
• Contents Insurance

You can find out more detailed information on how to set your bills up on our useful moving in checklist.

If you're looking for housing in the private sector for your first, second, third year or beyond, we can help. Take a look at our dedicated web page Finding private sector accommodation for advice and support. 

Remember to update your details on the electoral register when you move house. Not only will this ensure you can vote in elections but it also enhances your credit rating, too.

• See City of York Council's information for students registering to vote.

Before you can rent a property you must prove you have the right to rent in the UK. You will be asked to show documentation to your landlord.

• Right to rent document checks (Gov.uk)