Renting near a university can be a big worry for some landlords, but it’s also a huge market.
You may have tried weighing up the pros and cons yourself but we’ve done it for you.
Positives
High Demand– There are always students who need housing and more and more are deciding to continue into further education. With new students arriving every year with no intentions of getting a mortgage quite yet, it would be hard to have a property close to a university left unoccupied for long.
A landlord can take advantage of the need for property and meet the high rental prices often accompanied with renting close to a university.
Loans– Another positive is that a lot of student loans cover the cost of living and you’re more likely to get your rent. Depending on their parent’s income, students often get a hefty lump sum every 3 month to cover their living expenses and if not they usually get funding from their parents.
This can give you a bit of security when it comes to collecting your rent. Another option would be to ask for parents as guarantors within you’re the tenancy agreement so that nothing comes before paying rental fees.
Negatives
Stereotype– We don’t like to stereotype but student culture is often looked upon as partying first and studying second. Students often want their friends over to enjoy these years of their life and this can often lead to damage within the property. This may not necessarily be malicious however students move quite a few times at this stage in their life and they probably don’t see your property as a home but just as the next place they will be sleeping for a while.
To a young student with the world at their feet, it’s easy to forget about the landlord that’s trying to create an income from this property, cleaning up after themselves and looking after a house can be at the bottom of their list below socialising and course work.
Furnishing– It goes without saying, most students don’t own a lot of furniture. The most they probably have is a bed and that can be a big asset to bring from their home town which may be on the other side of the country. Students probably expect to be renting in a furnished property.
This can mean replacing things more often than you would expect. A new mattress for each new tenant, maintaining the quality of a sofa, keeping a check on the electrical safety of toasters, microwaves and fridges.
You can protect yourself against damage in your property by taking a deposit from the students which is given back under certain conditions. If anything gets damaged you have the right to keep this money and use it towards repairs. A good idea is to become friendly with any local furniture suppliers, if you are going back often for business you may be able to strike up a deal or get discounts.
Summer Holidays– As students often head home to visit their families while they have a break in their studies, the Summer holidays can mean that you will have 2-3 months with an unoccupied property.
You can use this time to get professionals in to clean the property or replace anything. While your property in unoccupied you will need to get specialist unoccupied property insurance. UKinsuranceNET are a leading broker in high risk polices and get you an instant online quote for your property.
You can read more about risks to your property by reading- Why Your Property Might Be Considered High Risk.
Credit Checks– Due to the age of most students, it can be hard to get any kind of a background check on them to ensure they will pay your rent or that they are reliable tenants.
A good idea is to approach the parents. Students are at an age where their parents are still very involved in their lives and can have some influence in advising them to pay their rent on time.
Overall it looks as though renting near a university isn’t a very good idea, however when done properly it can be very rewarding.
As you are earning more rent than usual due to the location of your property, you should be prepared to use that to pay out a bit more. Carpets will probably need to be replaced more often and furniture or utilities professionally cleaned.
It is best to have good property insurance in place with a company who understand the risks that student housing can bring. UKinsuranceNET can advise you as to what is best to use within your tenancy agreement so that you are protected. An example of which is to add clauses banning the use of risky items such as paintball guns or candles.
If you need any more advice regarding renting near a university, you can keep up with more of UKinsuranceNET’s updates and offers by following us on Facebook and Twitter.
