Help and advice for tenants

Frequently asked questions

How do I reserve a room?

When you’ve chosen a room, you simply transfer a holding deposit of £100 to us whilst we process your application – this can be done very quickly if you have your ID and proof of income ready.

The holding deposit means we save that room for you, and the £100 is deducted from your first month’s rent. There are no fees.

BANK DETAILS
Please transfer your holding deposit to our Lloyds business account:
Best City Rooms Ltd
Sort Code – 309192
Account Number – 61968360

What do I need as a student to rent a room?

If you are a student looking to rent a room with us, along with your IDs you will also need the following:

• proof you are registered on a course
• someone to stand as Guarantor for your rent – this must be a UK homeowner.

We appreciate that as an international student you may not have a UK Guarantor, and if this is your situation, you will be asked to pay 3 months rent in advance.

If you are studying AND working, and can provide us with proof of sufficient income (£1300 a month minimum) then you may not require a Guarantor.

Please note as a  student you must provide a Council Tax Exemption Certificate before you can move in – this is easy to obtain, you simply have to ask for it from the Administration office of your University or College.

What is the cost to move in?

You will need one months rent plus a deposit of £250 to move in – so between £650 and £750.

There are no fees.

Your deposit will be transferred to the Deposit Protection Scheme to protect it for the duration of your Tenancy, and returned to you when you leave, provided there are no arrears or damages.

Which bills are included in the rent?

The gas, electricity, water, council tax, broadband and TV licence are included in your rent.

For the gas and electricity there is a fair usage cap of upto a combined cost of £200 per calendar month for the whole household. If you go over this then the excess will be calculated monthly and split evenly between the people living there.

With the rising cost of energy you must be mindful of your usage. We want you to be warm but it is not acceptable or reasonable to have the heating on high all day and all night, because the majority of people living alone or in single-lets cannot afford to do this either.

If you are a student you must provide a Council Tax Exemption Certificate – this is easy to obtain, you simply have to ask for it from the Administration office of your University or College.

How long is the Tenancy Agreement?

The initial fixed Tenancy Agreement is normally for 6 months.

After 6 months the Tenancy Agreement continues as rolling, and to terminate the Agreement all you need to do is give us 1 calendar months notice. We will advertise your room and give you a minimum of 24 hours notice that someone is coming to view your room.

If you have a short contract term at work we can arrange for a shorter contract length to suit.

Do you have rooms for couples?

Currently not, we don’t want to overcrowd the house and we want to ensure there are enough bathroom facilities to support you.

Rooms are for single occupancy only.

A friend or family member can come and stay but no more than 2 nights per week unless previously agreed with Best City Rooms. And it’s always polite to mention it to your other housemates – how would you feel bumping into a stranger in the middle of the night!

Is there parking?

There is often unrestricted street parking outside the house. The advert for the property will describe the parking in more detail.

In some residential streets in Leicester, a parking permit scheme is in operation. A residents parking permit costs £25 and lasts for 12 months.

Applications for residents permits can be made online.

What furniture/equipment do you provide?

In the bedroom we provide the furniture, (bed, wardrobe, drawers) and a brand-new mattress protector when you move in which must remain in place.

WE DO NOT SUPPLY THE BEDDING.

In the kitchen we provide all the basic equipment: the pots, pans, utensils, crockery and cutlery. There is a microwave, a toaster, a kettle and an oven, along with a washing machine and TV. If there are 4 tenants you will have at least one tall fridge freezer, if there are 5 tenants you will have two tall fridge freezers to allow for a shelf each.

Do the bedrooms have individual locks?

Yes, all of our bedrooms have locks on. We know it can be daunting moving into a new household and want to make it as easy as possible for you.

Is there wifi?

Yes, we put in the best fibre optic packages available in our properties as we know how important internet is to everyone.

Do you allow pets?

None of our properties allow pets, this is for the comfort of all the other housemates.

Can I smoke?

All our properties are non-smoking inside, which includes hanging out the window!

You can of course smoke in the garden with the back door closed behind you.

My situation has changed, can I leave my contract early?

In this situation we try to help as much as possible. We will advertise the room for you and try to get someone to take over from you as soon as possible.

You will of course remain liable for rent until the day that someone takes over, or the end date of your contract, whichever is the soonest.

Can I have guests overnight?

We understand that you may have a friend or partner that you would like to sleep over occasionally, and of course this is quite normal. 

However there are strict rules as to how often this is allowed:

• No more than 2 nights a week

• One person only

• Others guests to leave by 11pm

It is also common courtesy to let other housemates know when you have someone staying over … so they aren’t surprised or alarmed if they bump into them in the night!

What's the Move-out procedure?

If you want or need to leave your house share, there are 2 very different scenarios: 

A.  You are Out of Contract

If your fixed term Tenancy Agreement has come to an end, then you must give  30 days Notice that you want to leave.

You do this by filling in the End of Tenancy form, which you’ll find on our website here:

https://www.bestcityrooms.co.uk/end-of-tenancy-form/

Once we receive this form we will email you the information regarding your last rent payment and simple instructions about what to do when you leave the property.

 

B.  You are still IN Contract 

If you are still IN CONTRACT, that means you are still within the period that you agreed to stay for, (usually 6 months) but you want or need to leave your house share earlier, then this is a very different scenario, as you have to pay the rent for the full period you agreed to stay for, unless a replacement tenant can be found.

 

What if I have no choice?

Stuff happens, and if you have no choice and have to terminate your contract early, then we will work with you, and do our best to find a replacement tenant as soon as possible.

In this scenario, please also fill out the End of Tenancy Form. Once you have confirmed that you definitely intend to leave, we will advertise your room on your behalf.

However, there is no guarantee how long this will take, and by law you must continue to pay rent until another tenant is found.

We always recommend that you try to find a suitable replacement tenant yourself also in this scenario, after all, many hands make light work, dont they?  

Are cleaners provided?

Yes cleaners are provided on a fortnightly basis for the shared areas, however it’s really important to remember that as tenants, you have a responsibility to clean also. 

You should be keeping your room and the shared areas clean and tidy on a day-to-day basis, so that the cleaners can come in and do deep-cleaning tasks in the shared areas.

The cleaners aren’t paid to wash dirty dishes, or clear the kitchen surfaces, and it’s really important that you keep on top of this yourselves. 

Similarly, rinsing the shower tray or bath after you’ve used it, and removing any lost hairs (this is really important as left to accumulate they become the cause of serious maintenance issues) is common courtesy, and a sign of respect to your house mates.

If you have a dirty housemate,  then we strongly recommend that you call a full house meeting to discuss it openly and to set out clear expectations and guidelines. 

Nine times out of 10 in our experience, there’s just one person being dirty and/or messy.  Sometimes its a lack of awareness (not having lived in a house share before) sometimes it’s a lack of consideration for others. But when the culprit sees that the rest of the house won’t put up with it, well they soon change their tune!

This is far more effective then us trying to intervene, and we insist that you try this first.