Housing Crisis - advice

Hi, I've firmed Durham and (all going well with A Levels) I hope to be there at the end of September. I was just wondering is any current students could give advice on the housing crisis? It seems odd to be thinking about second year housing before getting there and while some people still haven't had their offers!
Is it true that people have chosen who they live with in second year within the first month? Are the queues outside estate agents still that bad? And do you have any advice for freshers this year in terms of finding housing for next year?
Thank you so much, and for everyone still waiting on offers I wish you the best of luck xx

Hi, I've firmed Durham and (all going well with A Levels) I hope to be there at the end of September. I was just wondering is any current students could give advice on the housing crisis? It seems odd to be thinking about second year housing before getting there and while some people still haven't had their offers!
Is it true that people have chosen who they live with in second year within the first month? Are the queues outside estate agents still that bad? And do you have any advice for freshers this year in terms of finding housing for next year?
Thank you so much, and for everyone still waiting on offers I wish you the best of luck xx

Hey as a current first year at Durham I think I can help with this. Yes it’s true that there were lines to the estate agents, but those only lasted for a few days, and yes the situation was in my experience and opinion blown out of proportion a little bit. Even now, there are still a lot of places available to rent for next year. My advice would be don’t rush. Don’t be swayed by others because I know a few people who decided to get a house together after the first 3 weeks of uni and now the group are having issues and one of them has left the house share for next year. Get to know the people you want to live with before you sign a contract. DONT sign for house until you’ve seen it. Make sure you find a place with bills included in the rent (or alternatively you can find a place with a low rent with no bills included).

Hey, just to add to the previous user. The cohort of 2nd and 3rd years are the biggest Durham has ever had, this means that because most of the third year are graduating it should be easier next year to find a house. Moreover a lot of what happened last year was due to unnecessary panic. In my first year we had to find a house and it was competitive but we definitely didn’t signed the immediately the first day it was on the market or neither we ever queue outside a letting agency

Hi there

As a current second year student, I can confirm the same as what the others have mentioned. There was a 'crisis' but in my opinion, a lot of it came down to the panic created by students amongst themselves. There are still houses on the market and the rush earlier just caused the rents to go up in a windfall attempt by the letting agents. Ofcourse the cost of living crisis plays a major role in the rents going up as well but I didn't need to stand in any lines to secure a house in a good location with good people and for a reasonable price. I would definitely advise against signing a house with people you've known for a short period of time. It's wiser to really know who you'll be living with, as a year is a long commitment and you don't wanna be caught with someone who you can't tolerate. I think as long as you don't succumb to the panic, you will be able to secure good housing and it's definitely not something to worry about right now

-Himieka