50+ Tips For Renters

Tenants in London can now use a new tool to check whether their landlords need to license their homes – and some could be owed £1,000s in rent refunds if their landlord doesn't have the right documentation.

Some privately rented homes need a property licence before they can be rented out to tenants, to show that the property is suitable to be lived in and managed to an acceptable standard. But confusingly, different London boroughs have different property licensing rules, which can make it difficult for tenants to know whether their landlord has the right licence.

To help, the Mayor of London's launched a property licensing checker that lets you see if your rented home needs a licence – though you may still need to do some legwork to find out if your landlord actually has that licence. For full details, see our MSE News story New tool lets you check if your landlord needs a licence – and you could be owed £1,000s.

Credit scoring is a system used by lenders to check how financially attractive you are to them, using your past actions to predict future behaviour. Yet if you're 'financially linked' to someone on a financial product, it can have an impact. Even a joint bank account with housemates from which to pay house bills theoretically means you could be co-scored.

However while it's technically possible joint utility bills could be reported on credit files, current practice is not to do so. Similarly we've also confirmed being jointly named on a utility bill with a flatmate shouldn't mean you're jointly credit scored.

Bear in mind though that if there are two (or more) names on a utility bill and there's a default, it's likely to be reported on both (or all) credit records.

If you move out and no longer live with housemates who you had joint finances with, once the accounts are separated or no longer active, always write to the credit reference agencies and ask for a notice of 'disassociation' to stop their credit history affecting yours in future. See the Credit Scores guide for full help.

While small issues such as a dripping tap or squeaky floorboard needn't be a deal-breaker, use this list to help you check the rental out when you visit. It's worth taking an eagle-eyed friend or family member to help. Ask the landlord to fix any problems before you move in.

Or if you can live with it, use it to help you haggle on the rent:

• Spot damp. Case the joint for wet spots, mould, peeling wallpaper and condensation. Does it smell musty?
   

• Look up at ceilings. Look for cracks, brown stains, slow drips and leaks.
   

• Flick switches. Turn lights on and off, especially with older switches.
   

• Inspect the plumbing. Flush toilets and turn taps on. Check cupboards underneath sinks are dry. Check water pressure and that it gets hot, and that the central heating's working properly.
   

• Locks are key. Ensure door locks are up to insurance standards. Some policies insist that front and back doors be fitted with a five lever mortice deadlock. Check windows for locks and the front door for break-in signs.
   

• Turn on your phone. Check for a signal to see it's not a mobile dead zone.
   

• Avoid kitchen nightmares. In the kitchen, mime preparing a dinner. Is there enough room? If white goods are included, check they're working.
   

• Take a compass. Check if estate agents' promises of a sunny south-facing garden are true.
   

• Pry next door. If renting a flat or terrace, alarm bells should ring if neighbours' properties are rundown. Their problems can quickly become yours. Listen for noise from neighbours and roads. If you can, try to get a second viewing at a different time of day.

If you want something in a specific area or street, set an alert on Rightmove or Zoopla and it will email each time a vender lists a property. Simply type in your location and click 'Create an alert' on Rightmove, or 'Create email alert' on Zoopla.

It's easy to forget this when you've a ton of unpacking to do, but do meter readings for your gas and electricity when you move in. This way, you can pass them on to the suppliers to ensure you aren't charged for energy that the previous occupants used.

It's also worth noting you should do a meter reading every time you get a bill. Don't rely on your energy provider's estimate; these are often way out. If they're underbilling, you'll have a big whack to pay at the end of the year. If they're overbilling, then they've unfairly got your cash.

If your direct debit is way off kilter, call up and ask for it to be changed. You've a range of rights to ensure it's correct. See the Energy Direct Debits guide for help.

The type of tenancy agreement you have, and when your contract started, will affect your rights, so check what you've got. In a nutshell, 'assured shorthold tenancy agreements' in England and Wales are generally the most common type if renting with a private landlord (there are different names in Scotland and Northern Ireland – see below for help checking yours).

Assured shorthold tenancy agreements generally last six to 12 months, and mean your landlord must provide some repairs (plus other criteria too). When an assured shorthold tenancy ends, it becomes a 'month-to-month' tenancy. So unless your landlord ends it, you can stay on.

How to check what tenancy type you've got

Finding which tenancy type you've got can be tricky. It depends on a huge amount of factors, including when you moved in, how you pay rent and who you live with.

To help, housing charity Shelter has useful Tenancy Checker tools for England and Scotland. Just answer a few points on where you're living and when you moved in, and it'll quickly tell you which type you've got, plus your rights for each. Shelter also has info on tenancy types in Wales, or try Housing Advice NI for Northern Ireland.

It's also worth reading forumite G_M's useful posts on rent increases if you're on an assured shorthold tenancy, and what happens when a fixed term ends.

With all the stresses of moving, it's easy to forget simple, practical questions you'll wish you've asked. Worrying about when the dustmen come is easily forgotten when you're humping boxes upstairs, but even less fun when you're left with overflowing bins for a week. So we've put together some key questions to ask:

1. Where's the mains water stopcock (see stopcock tips above)?

2. Where's the fuse box?

3. Where are the gas and electricity meters?

4. Which days are rubbish and recycling collected?

5. Are there instruction manuals for any electrical items?

6. Who supplies the gas and electricity?

7. Where is the thermostat?

8. What's the landlord or letting agent's number?

9. Where are the TV aerial and phone line sockets?

10. Which provider supplies the home phone and broadband?

When you're renting, contents insurance can give useful protection if there's a break-in, or your stuff gets damaged. Yet don't under-insure – this could lead to insurers not paying out when you need it.

For example, say you're insured for £12,000, but actually have £24,000 of contents, and then £6,000 worth is stolen. The insurer could then assess your property and only pay out in proportion to your cover, meaning you'll get just £3,000 back.

Or worse still, the policy could be cancelled for being underinsured. If this is the case, you must disclose it in future, hiking insurance costs – and making it more difficult to get cover at all.

To work out the correct amount, walk from room to room, noting down what everything would cost on a new-for-old basis, including smaller items like clothing. It soon adds up. For a full list of best buys, see the full Home Insurance guide.

Moving into a new place is the perfect time to grab your finances by the nipples and tweak 'em hard. You'll be signing up to new services anyway, so could save £1,000s on your previous bills by ensuring you grab everything cheapest.

For starters, find Cheap Broadband, then try Digital TV Haggling and Cutting Your Water Bills. But those are just the start.

For a detailed checklist of over 30 quick ways to cut bills, see the full Money Makeover guide.

Take photos of the property on your mobile if you can. They'll be a useful reference point later, when all the places you've seen start to blur into one. Though of course, bear in mind it's private property, so don't post them online.

If you're a full-time student living alone or sharing with other students, you DON'T need to pay council tax, no matter how many of you live in the house.

If you're sharing with one or more non-students though, it gets more complicated. You still won't be charged council tax, but you may want to consider how to best split the household's council tax bill.

• Live with a non-student? If a student lives with one non-student, the student won't be taxed and council tax will be charged as if a single person lives there (so long as the student's full-time, otherwise check). That means the non-student can apply for the 25% single person's discount.

  However, this poses a moral dilemma. Should the non-student pay the 75% due? Or should the student contribute? Our suggestion is to split the 25% difference between the two people, so the non-student pays 62.5% and the student 12.5%.

  From the student's perspective, they wouldn't pay anything if their housemate was also a student. From the non-student's perspective, they'd only pay 50% of the bill if their housemate was also a non-student.




• Live with more than one non-student? The student is still exempt but because there are two non-students the house has to pay the full 100% charge. So it gets complex – the student hasn't added to the council tax bill, but nor has their presence resulted in a discount.

  You'll need to decide if and how you want to split the tax bill, though the legal stance is that full-time students aren't liable for the bill if non-students can't or don't pay.

You need to apply to your council for these discounts – they aren't deducted automatically. To apply, visit Gov.uk.

If you're renting shared accommodation, eg, in uni halls, your insurance won't cover you for theft unless there's been a violent or forced entry. So always make sure you lock your room's door when you leave, even if you're just popping out briefly.

If you're in a house share that doesn't have locks on each room, be aware this may adversely affect any home insurance claims. As there won't be any signs of forced entry (after all, a burglar could just walk into your room) they may not pay out. You could get tenants' home insurance – see our Home Insurance guide for more.