The time for you to start college is around the corner, and that means finding accommodation too.
The following guide is going to help you learn everything you need to know about looking for student housing.
Verified Properties
An important thing to keep in mind when looking for student accommodation is to make sure you work with an agent or agency that only offers verified accommodations, or a service like Rentable to find apartments that you know are real and truly available.
You may not want to hear this right now, but there are many people with ill-intentions who want to prey on students like you.
These individuals know you are looking for a place to stay and may try to trick you into getting a property that is not good or may even try to scam you. Making sure you see verified properties reduces the chances of dealing with a bad listing. The verification process is pretty strict, but it means that the owner has been verified, and the prices agree with the prices around the property.
Easy Payments
Today’s students are tech-savvy, so many of them are looking for specific benefits, like being able to pay for the rent easily. A good portion of students seldom use cash and usually don’t care for checkbooks.
Those who are in the same boat need to make sure the property you consider offers more than one way to pay the rent. This means it should accept credit cards, mobile payments, or other types of online payments. There are a few property owners out there who could make your life difficult if they don’t accept your form of payment, so make sure you check this out before signing the dotted line.
True Care
Students, especially those moving to a new city are going to need the help of a live person. It is important that the rental agency you talk to offers real help; or that you use quality companies to find your place.
If you do use a service, there are a few things you want to see if you are hoping to get the kind of help you need right now, like making sure they offer live agents.
Having a real agent means you’ll be able to get answers directly from a person who knows the neighborhood. If you want to be near a grocery store, then you are going to be able to get an answer quickly. A good agency may even offer services that are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Some rental agencies are also going to offer free services, which is another thing you want to see.
Strong Selection
The next thing you want to see is a strong selection of rooms or apartments. There are some agencies out there that have a few properties, and that could make it hard for you to look for amenities you want in the property you end up renting. Having a large selection of rooms means you’ll be able to choose a place that is near the city or far from the noisiness of the cities.
Having choices can help you choose between having a specific amount of roommates, which could make or break a living facility for some students. You want to have plenty of parking spaces, or make sure you have a public transportation option nearby. Some people want to have specific perks, like a gym within the premises, security in the property, or an office where you can study.
Trail of Proof
You are going to want to see a number of past students who have used the services you are considering from the student accommodations placement agency. Past students are not only going to leave reviews of the services for you to read and get a good sense of what to expect, but you’ll also have the assurance that this is a good agency to work with.
A good agency has probably helped hundreds of students and counting. Be sure to make an effort to talk to some of the students staying in the locations you are considering. A live conversation like this could help you see what kind of place you might be staying in.
Hopefully, this guide makes it easier for you to find good accommodations before the school year starts. And if you need help subletting, you can check out the tips from Rentable here.
