Renting a Flat.

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I apologise if this is the wrong place to put this, but I need advice on renting a flat.

My partner and I are both going to University in September. We're looking at four different flats on Monday, and we're pretty sure we know which one we want. My partner's sister is our guarantor, and she is paying all of our upfront fees (deposit etc. etc.) which is an immense relief because between us we barely have enough money to buy a pair of shoes between now and when our student finance comes in.

But, what documents do we need to sign a lease? We're in the UK, so American specific advice mayn't be too helpful.

Are there any questions that we should ask the agency?

I currently have a list consisting of things such as when asking when asking we have to pay the rent, what the average gas and electric bills are, etc. But I don't want to miss anything important.

You will need to sign the lease, which the letting agent will give to you. Read it through very carefully before you sign it. Your girlfriend's sister will need to sign the guarantor section.

They should also give you an inventory, which lists everything in the flat (if your flat is furnished). Check the inventory carefully and if there is anything missing, inform the letting agency so you don't find the money for that item being deducted from your deposit when you leave. Because your names are on the lease, you will need proof of identity (passport, drivers license). When the person from the letting agency shows you round the flat, they will likely explain exactly what you need. It is quite likely that they will have no idea what the gas and electricity bills are, however they should be able to tell you the Council Tax Band (although you won't need to pay Council Tax for as long as you are both studying).

On the subject of utilities, I would take a meter reading on the first day you move in, so you can make sure the energy company knows exactly how much you have used - you certainly don't want to end up paying for electricity for the previous tenant.

If there is anything you want clarified or any other info, I'm happy to help. Remember that the letting agency earn money if they fill the flat quickly, so they should be very keen to help (at least until you have moved in!).

I hope you find a lovely flat

Thank you. This is all scary stuff.

Neither of us have much in the way of ID, my boyfriend has his Birth Certificate, Deed poll, an out of date passport and that's it. I have my birth certificate, deed poll, student ID for the college I just left, and my national insurance card. We both have our AS3 letter's from UCAS as well. Do you think that would be enough identification?

The advert for the flat we both looked at and wish to rent was removed from the website (findaproperty.com), d'you think this should be taken as a negative, neutral or positive sign?

Side note, London is expensive.

Sorry for getting your partner's gender wrong, I just read partner and made a guess, sorry

Hopefully that ID will be fine, if not someone else with ID may have to pay the rent until you have ID that is suitable. Hopefully it will not come to that. Make sure that you explain about the ID as soon as possible so there is a chance to sort things out if necessary. If you've said you want to rent that flat and they've taken the advert down that sounds like a good sign. You could phone them just to check and find out what is happening.

London is expensive, I don't envy you the rents there. I am from Edinburgh which is expensive enough, but London prices make Edinburgh prices seem like pennies. Thankfully I live in Sheffield now, which is considerably cheaper.

Keep us updated

Yay! Sheffield! Home of Def Leppard and The Full Monty!

Yep, that's the place. It's a bit like it was in the Full Monty right now with no jobs - although I'm not quite at the stage where I'm considering taking my clothes off for money!

We saw a nice one, and said we wanted it and everything. Now they're saying the want all of the rent for the whole year upfront. Who the hell has 9k just sitting around?

Feeling pretty burnt out at the moment.