First year at university is done for my 19-year-old and along the way we have learnt so much. For example, she has learnt that you cannot live on chicken wraps alone, she has learnt that she gets through inordinate amounts of hair conditioner and I have learnt that the year is shorter than we imagined! We also learnt Univeristy average student living costs per week are extortionate. Now we are preparing for the second year, life after halls and sharing student properties.
Before Chloe headed off to Plymouth I thought the year would drag and I wrote about having a teenager starting university. I anticipated my heartbreaking at how infrequent I would see and speak to my firstborn. However, that wasn’t the case. As I walked away with leaky eyes after setting up her room I discovered how resilient we both are. Facetime is also a wonderful thing!
As a family we visited during our October half term and then she was home for Erin’s birthday in November and then back again at Christmas. She stayed a month as she had no exams. Then the gap until Easter was relatively short when she was home for two weeks. I was shocked to learn that her university year ended in May and she is now here until September.
Packing up her hall room took more effort than taking it all down to Plymouth in the first place. So much was boxed and vacuumed packed (like her new duvet) that it didn’t take up too much space, yet packing up the car was like a giant game of kerplunk. As soon as I got one thing in something else fell! A man with a van would have been helpful! We also managed to lose her room key in the boot of the car as it flew off her finger whilst loading the car. Despite searching, we resigned ourselves to the fact that it was lost and a £50 fine followed. Only Chloe could lose a key less than ten minutes before we were due to hand it in!
Chloe will now be moving into shared accommodation with her new friends from the hockey team. Student properties are a whole new game though and here I am sharing what we have already learnt!
- Student properties are in demand, especially larger houses and Chloe learnt that she had to choose and sign for a house in November, yes that’s right, two months after moving into halls, before her duvet covers had even been washed, and still in the process of making friends she had to decide who to live with and secure a student property. Thankfully the hockey team are living together so it was an easy decision for Chloe. There will be 7 of them in one house! That is 7 hockey kits regularly being washed and 7 pairs of Astros to fall over in the hallway! Moving in day will be fun as with all house removals.
- There are letting agencies, especially for student properties and these, understand the specifics and uniqueness of student life and student lets. They will arrange the viewings and be the link between the students and the landlord. This ensures everything is carried out legally and has certainly given me peace of mind as Chloe and her friends embark on this next stage in student property. The university will be able to help students by providing a list of reputable agencies. This is much better than my experience where we were left to our own devices and not supported in this transition.
- The hand-chosen bedding that we co-ordinated and bought new for this year is no longer useful. Now that Chloe has a double bed she needs all new bedding and duvet again. I wish I hadn’t spent so much last year now as I have lots to replace, we may even need a moving man!
- Student properties are often cheaper than halls. Last year we were paying £150 per week compared to this year where we will be paying £100 per week. It is a huge difference of £50 per week and for us, her student maintenance loan will just about cover her student property, unlike last year where we had to top it up significantly. I will still need to give Chloe £50 a week for food and living costs.
- The rent runs for longer than the students are in the accommodation. We start paying from 26th August despite her course not starting until mid-September. We don’t finish paying until End of June despite her finishing mid-May! This also needs budgeting for and whilst it is frustrating – that’s the contract and there is nothing we can do about it so it is not worth stressing! It was the same in halls and despite being home for 4 weeks over Christmas we still had to pay for that month.
- The location of the house is very important. Many don’t have parking spaces so this needs to be checked if your teenager is taking their car to university. Do students want to be near the university or further out? Remember those 9am lectures so make the right decision! For Chloe and her friends, a central location was really important as they train most days for hockey and need to be close to the gym and training ground.
- Chloe was hopeful that she would get on great with her hall flatmates, that had been my experience of halls and she expected the same. Yet her experience was not like that, her flatmates did not become a tight unit, they were very different personalities, on different courses and lived very separately. Luckily Chloe is confident and made friends in other ways, primarily through hockey but by also chatting to people in the other flats in her halls.
- Read the contract and understand the terms and conditions of your student property. Make sure that you are responsible only for your rent rather than being jointly liable for the whole house. Although you start the year confident that you will love living with your housemates sometimes things change. After all, you haven’t known these people long or ever lived with them before.
- Make sure that you check the inventory when moving in, it is also a good idea to take photos so that if there is ever an issue about fixtures and fittings you have good evidence of how things were when you move in.
Moving into student properties is another milestone in the University experience and one to enjoy, use my tips above to make this transition a safe and secure one. Learning to become more independent is really important and can only skill you up for your future.
