First steps
As a student, your housing contract is likely a ‘fixed term tenancy agreement’. A fixed term tenancy means you rent the property for a set time, i.e. 12 months. This means you are responsible for your share of the rent until the fixed term ends, unless you can end the tenancy early.
You can end a fixed term tenancy early by either a) using a break clause in your contract, b) agree an early end to the tenancy with your landlord, and finding a replacement tenant.
You still have a contract with the landlord even if you've not moved in yet. There is no 'cooling off period' for tenancies. If you realise you are unable to afford the rent or are no longer moving to the area for university, you should speak with the landlord to ask if they will consider releasing you from the contract. You are responsible for the rent from the tenancy start date unless the landlord agrees to release you from the tenancy agreement.
If you live in a shared house, you must speak to everyone in the house as they need to know and agree to you ending your part of the tenancy. If you are looking for a replacement tenant, they should also be involved in the process as they will be living with the new housemate. We get that this can be awkward, so please reach out to us if you need support navigating this.
You will then need to talk to your Landlord about your situation and what you would like to do. If you have a Lettings Agent. They will liaise with your Landlord on your behalf. You can reach out to your landlord/lettings agent in any way that feels comfortable to you and share as much about the situation as you want to. Explain that you would like an opportunity to negotiate breaking your contract early and you will find a suitable replacement tenant for your room with the agreement of the other housemates.
Finding a replacement tennt
You will then likely need to find someone else who can move in when you leave and sign a new agreement (i.e. take on the responsibility of the rent). We understand that this can feel like a daunting process, but this is a very common issue for students and there are always other students that need to find another room for a variety of reasons.
Once you have confirmation from the landlord, you can advertise the room. There are many ways to do this, and we have shared a list of ideas below:
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Take a nice photo of your room and other communal areas OR use pictures from original advert. Make sure to have a bit of a clean before if you are taking your own photo’s!
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Details to include in your advert: location, type of property, move-in date, length of contract, monthly rent, bills included or not, housemates, preferences (e.g. female only), etc.
Post your advert as widely as possible and you feel comfortable with to get the most amount students to see your room – you never know who’s looking!
Spare room - Tip: include first part of postcode, ‘Guildford’, and rent in the title – eg, Double room available now- GU2 GUILDFORD - £165pw (Bills Included). Re-post the advert every week to get it as near the top as possible
Social Media - Share your advert (photo and brief details) in your social media networks and ask friends to re-post/share. Repost the advert multiple times.
Post details in other networks
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Consider posting in your module or course chats, and ask friends to post in their networks too. Chances are that there is another student who needs somewhere to live.
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You could also reach out to your Course Rep to see if they could spread the details
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Consider printing out adverts and putting them up in areas students will see – e.g. halls of residence, in faculty buildings, etc.
If people express interest in your room, invite them over for a viewing. Remember to give your housemates 24-48 hours warning to let them know someone will be looking round the property. Ideally your housemates will be there to see if they are happy to live with them too.
If everything goes well at the viewing and they want to move in, share the details with your landlord or Lettings Agent to let them know they have found someone suitable. They will then advise you on next steps and start doing the necessary checks on the new tenant. You should refer to your Landlord or Lettings Agent at this point for their advice on the process.