Anon,
If you like the uni, the city, and it's close by, you think you will have a good social life, and it's not too expensive then that's brilliant : )
You do not need to move just because other people are moving! Students at the university will be from different places so you won't miss out on meeting new people and expanding your social circle.
You could move into halls and meet really great people and form great friendships, but you could also move into halls and not get on well with the people you share with and make most of your friends from your course. Moving into halls will give you more independence, but might not necessarily be where you make your friends.
If you really want to have more independence, it might be an idea to explore this option once you've made friends with people you would like to share with in the second year.
You could also move to a new place after you've completed your degree, so you shouldn't feel like you have to move now just because other people are.
This year could be a good opportunity to save some money and to put it towards something nice next year e.g. a holiday.
Hope that helps,
Oluwatosin – 2nd year student – University of Huddersfield