Private sector accommodation

Moving into your first shared house is another important milestone on your student journey. While it's your responsibility to find accommodation for your returning years, we can offer advice and support. 

We hold talks in the first term of the academic year, offering tips on where to look and what to look for. We can also discuss your options with you throughout the year.

Take your time when arranging your accommodation. Before you sign your contract, make sure you're happy with your flatmates, property, location and budget. Your tenancy agreement is a legally binding contract. Once you’ve committed, it can be difficult and expensive to change your mind.

Your property may be referred to as a House of Multiple Occupation (HMO).

Decide where to live

Many of our students live in or near Bath. Explore different neighbourhoods and transport options. You might discover some areas that are more convenient than you expected.

You might want to be close to:

• A U5 bus stop
• University campuses and teaching locations
• Cycle paths
• Your part-time job
• A train or bus station.

Start your online search

You can use our database of properties, Student Pad, to find student accommodation in the private sector. Email accommodation@bathspa.ac.uk for login details.

Agencies and landlords may advertise properties on sites such as Zoopla and Rightmove. These are usually most suitable if you have a group of students to live with.

If you're looking for a room on your own, SpareRoom can be a great starting point. Ads tend to offer one room within an existing household. Contract lengths can be more flexible.

For more information on living in Bath, read the Student Community Partnership's guide.

Choose your flatmates

Maybe you’ve decided to house-hunt with a group of uni friends, or maybe you’re still looking for flatmates. Everyone’s journey is different, but whether you’re strengthening existing bonds or forging new ones, we have some tips:

• Meet everyone you’ll be sharing with in-person
• Don’t meet new people on your own
• Trust your gut instincts
• Make sure you leave a good impression, too!

You may wish to join the Bath Student House Hunting Discord group to look for houses with spare rooms. Students may be from BSU or the University of Bath.

Once you find people you like, consider their hobbies and personality. Do you have shared interests? Are your new flatmates party animals, or serious about studying? Will they be sociable outside of their studies, or busy with a part time job?

Remember, you’ll sign a legal document making a commitment to live with them, so it’s best to be sure.

View as many properties as you can

Compare a few different properties to learn what you prefer. Everyone should view a property before they sign for it. If people can’t attend viewings, take photos or videos when you look around the property.

Don’t visit a property alone. If you can't avoid this, make sure someone knows where you’re going and what time you should be back.

Here’s a list of things to consider:

• Is the property clean and in a good condition, inside and out?
• What’s included in the rent?
• Do the electrical and gas appliances work? By law, landlords must have gas safety certificates for all gas appliances; ask to see one.
• Find out who else has keys to the property.

Beware of scams

Please be careful when responding to adverts for private accommodation as there have been reports of people being scammed. Scams often ask you to send money through services like Western Union or MoneyGram to secure accommodation.

Don't send money for accommodation before you:

• View the property
• Verify the person you’re talking to is the landlord or letting agent
• See the tenancy agreement.

If a scam has caught you out, please keep any correspondence and report it to the police as soon as you can.