Many of you will be thinking about where to live this year when the new university year begins. The competition for good quality rental properties in Edinburgh is high which means the best flats will be snapped up quickly! To make sure you don’t miss out on your dream flat, start the search early.
Before you start
There are a few things to decide before you start flat hunting – who do you want to live with for the whole year? How many people will you share with? Which area of Edinburgh do you want to live in? Also, you will need to work out how much you can afford on rent, as well as making sure you have the security deposit and one month’s rent in advance available to secure the property.
Arrange viewings
Always view a flat before you commit to renting it. Pictures can be deceiving and you can’t get a real feel for the place until you’ve been in it. If you’re unable to attend the viewing make sure one of your flatmates does and reports back to you. Ask the letting agent questions and find out everything you need to know while you’re at the viewing.
Talk to existing tenants
Nobody has a better idea of what the property is like than the current tenants. If they are in the flat at the time of your viewing, you can ask them questions to get an idea of their experience of living in the flat.
Act fast
Most properties tend to get snapped up after group viewings, so if you find a place you and your flatmates like, there’s no point waiting around! At Cullen Property, we operate a fair ballot system for anyone interested in the property which takes place at the end of the viewing.
Once you have secured your property, most letting agents in Edinburgh require the rent to be paid from one bank account, so it’s a good idea to plan in advance which bank account the rent and bills will be paid from. Many of our tenants decide to set up a new bank account, either in one or two names, and this bank account is used for paying rent, bills and purchasing household items.
Our available student properties for 2017 will go live on 8th February – keep an eye out on our social media and website!
