House Hunting 2009 Continues - Information for Students and Landlords

Over 280,000 searches have been undertaken since the start of house hunting on Saturday 10th January 2009. This is a 1.5% increase on 2008.

• 12,126 bed spaces have been advertised in the current registration year to date in smaller off-street properties. This is an increase of 10% on 2008.
• So far this year 75% of properties have been let compared with 80% last year.
• 75% of bed spaces advertised are covered by the Unipol Code
• 86% of properties let were covered by the Unipol Code
• Average rent of properties let is £63.17 
• The Unipol website had over 25 million hits from January through to the end of August 2009.  This is up 19% on 2008. 

The current search figures by each day can be viewed at the bottom of the "Property Search" page in small type right at the end of the page and these are updated every hour or so.

 For Students

The biggest thing to remember is that there is no need to panic when it comes to finding accommodation. There are more student rooms in Leeds than there are students, so you have more control over the market than you think. Make sure you take your time and think about whom you are going to live with, where you want to live, and how much you can realistically afford.

If you want to know why 3rd year students often get the best houses click here

If you are a new student in Leeds, undergraduate or postgraduate, Unipol can help.  If you want to search for a room in a shared house please click here.  if you want a room in halls please click here

There are plenty of houses that are part of the Unipol Code, which means houses meet a given standard and if things go wrong you have access to an independent complaints procedure that normally sorts things out.

 Some interesting Unipol Code facts:

• Full Code Members: 350
• Supporters of the Unipol Code (Managing Agents): 26
• Inspections carried out in 2009: 216 (including 51 re-inspections)
• Inspections planned for September and October: The Accreditation Officer will be concentrating on inspecting properties put forward from managing agents signed up to the Supporter of the Unipol Code Scheme.

Is your landlord part of the Unipol Code? To find out click here

If you are with an agency it may be that they have signed up as a Supporter of the Unipol Code rather than as a full member.  To find out more about supporters and to check the list of accredited agencies please click here

Visit the Unipol office and find out how we can help you

Unipol is open Monday to Friday 9.30am to 4.45pm to:

• make accompanied viewings of Unipol owned or managed properties
• pick up one of a number of publications about finding a house in Leeds
• get information about the Unipol Code and the benefits it can give you 
• receive information and advice on living in Leeds and where to live
• browse thousands of properties on the Unipol website
• speak to advice staff about looking at properties and contracts

Whatever you do, make sure you use Unipol and the web site as your first port of call for all things house hunting.