National Student Money Week is an annual campaign created by the National Association of Student Money Advisersto raise awareness about the money advice and support available to students at University and beyond.
Over the course of this week, we will be sharing information, advice and support available which focuses on the 2024 theme: Less Risk, More Reward: Maintaining your Financial Wellbeing at University.
Housing risks:
There is so much to think about when it comes to finding a house during your time at university. It can be difficult to know where to go or what you should be looking out for, even more so if it is your first time away from home.
On occasion, we have seen University of Plymouth students who have posted about their housing search on various social media sites and have then been contacted by potential scammers asking for them to pay a deposit for a property that potentially does not exist.
So what can you do to ensure you are taking less risks when it comes to finding somewhere to live? We have put together some top tips on staying alert, avoiding scammers, and ensuring the property you are looking to rent is genuine:
1. Check the property exists. Use a search tool such as Google Maps to check the address of the property and that it is situated where you are expecting it to be.
2. View the property. This way you can ensure the property exists and see the condition of the house/room you are looking to move into. If the person is refusing to offer you a viewing of the property, this should signal that something is not right. Never hand over any money until you have viewed the property.
3. Read reviews! We would strongly check searching for reviews on letting agencies and reading what others have experienced when using their service. Trust Pilot is a prime example of a site you can go to and do some research. Less risk, more reward!
4. Be careful making a deposit. When you pay the deposit, it is preferable that the funds are transferred via bank transfer and not cash.
5. Ensure the communication you have with a landlord/letting agent is professional. This communication should take place via email and should not be aggressive, threatening or make you feel pressured. We understand students very often use social media platforms to communicate, however, these channels should not be used to communicate with landlords or letting agents.
6. Get your contract checked by a member of the advice team. To use this service, all you have to do is send through your contract to advice@su.plymouth.ac.uk before signing alongside your name and student number.
If you have any doubts, feel it’s too good to be true, or are unsure about anything related to taking on a new property, please do not hesitate to reach out and speak with the Student Advice team. We are here to support you and want to ensure you have a good experience when finding a new house. You can contact the team via email at advice@su.plymouth.ac.uk, the online enquiry form you can find here (https://www.upsu.com/advice/enquiry/) or by phone on 01752 588373.
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