The Student Room Group
Voting for TSRs Ultimate Study Playlist is NOW OPEN >>
Voting for TSRs Ultimate Study Playlist is NOW OPEN >>
Voting for TSRs Ultimate Study Playlist is NOW OPEN >>

Entire student loan on accommodation?

Hey everyone

Everywhere I'm seeing "make your student loan last" and "ensure that you stretch out your loan across the year". All of my student loan is used up on accommodation! I'm not 100% sure but I think I got the biggest loan you can get in the maintenance category and I'm left with something like £15, anyone else in the same boat or are the Plymouth accommodations just very expensive?

Jack

Scroll to see replies

sounds like you ve got a very expensive rent, are you able to switch to a cheaper option?
Reply 2
Avatar for afctom
afctom
4
My maintenance loan is £7k but my UCL accommodation for 40 weeks is over £9k so I'm already minus before I've even started. Student Finance make the assumption that your parents will help you with day to day living costs and that you will be working.
I'm in London and I had that same problem. Either find cheaper accommodation (outside of halls) or get a job. A lot of people have to do that in order to keep on going throughout the year.

However, what is said about making sure your money lasts is true. I know some people who managed to spend all of what they had left within a month and needed to ask parents for money all the time. If you do need to ask your parents and they can afford to, do ask. You can also look into hardship loans and grants from your university.
Reply 4
Avatar for Taelii
Taelii
OP
10
The place I went for is around £131 a week for 41 weeks or something which was a medium priced place, and my loan is about £5400. I'm not too bothered as parents are playing for food and I can get a job for going out money. I was just curious if everyone was in a similar situation.
Reply 5
Avatar for Taelii
Taelii
OP
10
Original post by claireestelle
sounds like you ve got a very expensive rent, are you able to switch to a cheaper option?


Yes but the other places don't look too good :frown:
Original post by Taelii
Yes but the other places don't look too good :frown:


But you can't afford the places that do look good. This is part of the reason that people int he UK have such debt problems, they live beyond their means. You get what you can afford, not what you want.
Reply 7
Avatar for Taelii
Taelii
OP
10
Original post by GoingToBurst
But you can't afford the places that do look good. This is part of the reason that people int he UK have such debt problems, they live beyond their means. You get what you can afford, not what you want.


But I can afford it, it's just that i'm not left with anything afterwards
Original post by Taelii
But I can afford it, it's just that i'm not left with anything afterwards


Well then you can't afford it. How are you going to eat? Travel (I don't mean holidays, I mean the bus or taxi when you need them, or fuel for a car if you have one)? Uni supplies? Just because you have £1000 and something costs £1000, doesn't mean you can afford it. You have to consider the impact that expenditure has on everything else in your life. You can't survive in accommodation alone. It's not like you can eat your flatmates.
This happened to my friends. They got the smallest loan possible (think its around £3500) and we live in the second most expensive city in the country. Our rent was almost £5000. They had to live on handouts from mummy and daddy. People should really research living costs before choosing their uni tbh.
Original post by Taelii
Yes but the other places don't look too good :frown:


If you want somewhere else you'll have to ask your parents or work, most students cant afford to be fussy.
I'm going to be minus 300 on accomodation :smile:
It's very important to remember that you need to live and not just exist at uni.

You've got accommodation, but then you have nothing else. No money for anything. You cannot live like this.

I would highly suggest looking at cheaper options - if you really really cannot bear the thought of living there (remember you can't afford it at this point in time) then you need to secure a job or agree with your parents some income from them.
Same, my loan covers only my accommodation but I got money in da bank.
Remember its only 40 something weeks usually. So it seems silly to opt for the most expensive option as you won't even be there that long it'll just fly by.
Reply 15
Avatar for codle
codle
16
My student loan never covered the whole of my rent - I worked and had some help from my parents, which is quite normal for a lot of people (especially in Winchester, which is an expensive place to live).

That being said, you shouldn't struggle to find something affordable in Plymouth - my sister goes there and there are a lot of options for accommodation. She paid similar amounts of rent as I did and got a much much fancier house!


Posted from TSR Mobile
Wait wait wait wait wait wait wait wait....

Plymouth?!

No, it shouldn't be that expensive! There are tons of halls, you're probably looking at the most premium ones in the city!

(My home city)
Reply 17
Avatar for Taelii
Taelii
OP
10
Original post by GoingToBurst
Well then you can't afford it. How are you going to eat? Travel (I don't mean holidays, I mean the bus or taxi when you need them, or fuel for a car if you have one)? Uni supplies? Just because you have £1000 and something costs £1000, doesn't mean you can afford it. You have to consider the impact that expenditure has on everything else in your life. You can't survive in accommodation alone. It's not like you can eat your flatmates.


"I'm not too bothered as parents are playing for food and I can get a job for going out money" and the hall is on campus.
Reply 18
Avatar for Taelii
Taelii
OP
10
Original post by Roving Fish
Wait wait wait wait wait wait wait wait....

Plymouth?!

No, it shouldn't be that expensive! There are tons of halls, you're probably looking at the most premium ones in the city!

(My home city)


They're the medium priced ones (the butler doesn't even bring the meals to you after he cooks them)! All the students I spoke to said the halls are expensive and the places outside of the campus (for the 2nd year and above students) are really cheap. So it will just be for a year :smile:
Original post by Taelii
They're the medium priced ones (the butler doesn't even bring the meals to you after he cooks them)! All the students I spoke to said the halls are expensive and the places outside of the campus (for the 2nd year and above students) are really cheap. So it will just be for a year :smile:


Just had a look at the price list and the prices are absolutely horrendous.

:/

Quick Reply

Related discussions

Latest

Trending

Trending

Articles for you