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Housing laws vary between Scotland and England. Get advice relating to England

His course was about to start, and Naz hadn't even thought about finding a place to live yet. Fortunately, help was at hand.

Starting early

'When I got my grades and knew I'd got in, I was ecstatic. From then on, getting ready for college was a bit of a mad rush. Before I knew it, I was packing my bags. Then it occurred to me that I had nowhere to live...' 

Limited college accommodation

I didn't know where else to look and was really worried

'I had heard of halls of residence, but I didn't really know how to get in. I called up the college accommodation service to find out, but they said all the halls were full and I'd have to find a privately rented place.

'I'd only been to that part of the country a couple of times before so I didn't know where to start. I was really worried. Where was I going to live? And how was I going to meet people if I was living on my own?'

Finding people to share with

'The accommodation service told me that loads of people were in the same situation. They said that if I got up to college a few days early I'd be able to meet other people who I might be able to share with. They also explained how to protect my deposit and gave me some tips on sharing.

'I went to college early, on the Monday before term started. There were loads of people there looking for rooms, and lots of adverts from landlords and people who needed extra housemates.'

Choosing the right place

The place gets pretty messy sometimes... but I'm having a good time

'I used a checklist to compare the places I went to see, which was really useful. In the end, I found a great place near the college, with three other guys. The place gets pretty messy sometimes, and it's not huge, but I'm having a good time.'

Student advice 

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