Rent

Accommodation

BBC released a rent calculator which shows how rent varies across the UK. Give it a try and see where you can live for how much!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-23234033

This map below provides a useful view over the rent landscape for homes in 2017

A single room in London is likely to cost over £1000 a month. Outside London this is likely to be £500 - £800.

Student rents

For students around the UK the average weekly rent is £125. Source

Deposit & rent in advance

A deposit can be the cost of up to 6 weeks rent and a landlord may ask for up to a month’s rent on top of that in advance. (Outside of London and major cities- deposits are more likely to be 4 weeks)

Tenancy deposit protection scheme

VIDEO- Good outline on the scheme and how it works

These schemes guarantee that tenants will get their deposits back at the end of the tenancy, if they meet the terms of the tenancy agreement and do not damage the property. Landlords must protect their tenants' deposits if they have let the property on an assured shorthold tenancy (AST) which started after 6 April 2007. There are three official schemes. If your landlord doesn't protect your deposit you can take them to court and they may have to repay you four times the amount of the deposit.

Rent Arrears

You get into rent arrears if you are struggling to pay your rent and a backlog of payments is created. In some cases it will be obvious why you have a problem - your income or expenses have suddenly changed for the worse, for example because you've lost your job or a housemate has moved out and has stopped contributing to the rent.

If rent arrears build up for eight weeks or more and you're on universal credit, then the landlord can ask for the payment to be made direct – this applies to private landlords as well as council and housing association landlords.

Universal Credit will not be paid for the first seven days, and it will then be paid monthly, in arrears. This means that it will usually take six weeks for people to get their money, but an advance payment can be made in some circumstances.