Accommodation Hunting: The Options
- Admin
- Feb 11, 2020
- 7 min read
Updated: Sep 12, 2020
Accommodation is a super important aspect of Uni life. It's the place you sleep, dress and build privacy in. Here in Newcastle, you can get accommodation as cheap as £69 per week.
But be wary! Some areas are dangerous, far from Uni or town, no halal places, noisy, etc. It's annoying that we can't see the accommodation before we book it, so here's some tips and options to help you get the best out of your accom!
Landlord Accommodation
Landlord accommodation is the cheapest type, as the rooms are typically very cheap, and you can monitor how much electricity you use, restrict it and save money! You can also get your own nifty little house with your friends. These types are situated in residential areas, which are quiet, more rural and neighbouring children and families, which can be nice! However, getting a landlord based accommodation is a bit tricky since it is hard to assess the reliability of the landlords.
Tips:
Make sure the landlord replies timely to you. If they haven’t gotten back to you for more than a week. Don’t bother
Set up a time for a video call with the landlord and ask for a tour of the place.
Landlords here need to abide rules and regulations. Check if they are accredited!
Also an important thing to take note is how UK accommodation rules for students, especially International students. Eg. How many instalment fees there are.
For example, Zahra found out a bit late that you were required to pay 15 weeks of rent in advance for the initial rent …
Then the booking deposit .. to book the place
Damaged deposit - usually around £350
The initial rent
So make sure you know exactly what needs to be paid before you get there!
Student Housing: Private
These are private companies that cater to students. They are not affiliated with the University. Newcastle has a bunch of these all around. They tend to be situated in convenient places, like near particular schools, near places of interest like the Quayside or in town, therefore you'll be getting a more 'urban' lifestyle.
Benefits:
No need to liaise with landlords
Bills including electricity, wifi, heating, water are usually all included in one price
Cleaning equipment and kitchen utilities (eg. kettle, microwave) usually are included
Safer, as the company is meant for students
Good quality accommodation
On the flip side:
Expensive compared to landlord accommodation (£100 per week and more)
You have to pay for laundry (around £3 for a wash, using the Circuit app)
Look out for:
Contract options! 51 week options (Sept to Sept) tend to be cheaper per week, however due to Tier 4 visa expiry dates, you’ll have to leave in late August. You can take the 51 week option if you can find someone to replace you, or you don’t mind wasting 2 weeks of settlement. The company can advertise your room for a short stay when you leave in August, but this cannot be guaranteed.
Installment fees! These are outlined in the tenancy agreement. Set a reminder to pay them as the company will probably not remind you. As we are international students, they tend to ask for only 2 instalment fees per year, but this can vary.
Accommodations and their Company Names
Edit: Do NOT go for Walton Robinson!
Unite Students:
Magnet Court (17 mins walk to Med School, starting £110/w)
Manor Bank (24 mins walk to Med School, starting £95/w)
Dwell Student Living:
Garth Heads (27 mins walk to Med School, starting £69/w)
Camilla’s review on Garth Heads: https://camilarahim.wixsite.com/selfescape/blog/autumn-winter-in-dwell-ncl
Student Roost:
St. James Point (15 mins walk to Med School, starting £129/w)
Liberty Living:
Liberty Plaza (17 mins walk to Med School, starting £119/w)
Liberty Central (20 mins walk to Med School, starting £105/w)
Fresh Student Living:
The Shield (25 mins walk to Med School, starting £105/w)
Roman House (25 mins walk to Med School, starting £94/w)
Here is a link for all the student halls ranked in terms of student reviews:
Student Housing: Uni
Finally, University accommodation, which is very similar to private, the only difference is that its extra safe as it is managed by the university.
The cheapest accommodation you can get is St. Mary’s College (£86/w). Below are pors and cons regarding St. Mary's College. https://www.ncl.ac.uk/accommodation/university/stmary/#overview
Positive things :
Cheap
Free bus to uni and city
Uni accom so any issues will be settled by uni.
Safe and secure inside the accom by means of theft and break in kinds
In Fenham, so Muslim community nearby, so lots of Halal shops
Bad things :
Far from city, as you have to rely on a bus. Walking from here to Medical School takes 30 minutes!
Paid in one instalment for international students
Map showing Locations of Each Reviewed Accom
1. St. Mary’s College
2. Worley Close (Zahra)
3. Verde Building (Dania)
4. Magnet Court (Sabrina)
5. Garth Heads (Cam)
6. Spital Tongues (Mei Yen, Yong Yong and Jun Wei)
Reviews
2. FENHAM: Worley Close (Zahra’s Accommodation)
Another landlord accommodation, situated in Fenham, a quiet residential area. Fenham has a thriving Muslim community, including halal restaurants, grocery stores and a butchers. It’s also quite cheap to rent a place! This accom is 20 mins away from medical school and 15 mins away from town.
Here is the link to the landlord's website: https://studentpropertytorent.co.uk/
This landlord owns other properties in town, so be sure to check them out!
Pros:
Cheap (£70-90/week depending on room and location)
Very close to halal grocery stores
Cons:
The houses are built quite old, and do not have double walls for insulation, therefore it’s a bit colder than other places
Furniture and utilities are old
3. TOWN: Verde Building (Dania’s accommodation)
Since it’s student accommodation, you don’t have to worry about anything; bills, heating, WiFi, everything is settled for you. Any maintenance issues can be resolved by simply making a request on the portal online, free of charge. 10 minutes to the med school, 15 minutes to town and central station, and 20 minutes to Newcastle University’s main campus, the location is perfect! The most basic room is £125/week, in a flat of 6.
Pros:
Great services for the amount you pay. Gym, bike storage, WiFi, bills etc are all included. There’s a common room with a pool table, table tennis set, board games, and a cinema room!
Laundry on site but requires payment.
Flats come with full kitchen (minus utensils). Stove, oven, microwave, fridge, and an electric kettle are provided. Best part? You can cook without worrying about electricity consumption!
Reception team are friendly and always there to help. There’s usually freebies in the mornings; pastries, to-go cups with a selection of teas, coffees, hot chocolate, and some boiling water to make your drink.
Parcels are kept at the reception counter, so you never have to worry about being home for a delivery.
Events throughout the year with meals and games!
St James metro station is across the street, and so is St James Park, where games happen frequently, bringing in food trucks to the area!
Student accommodation all around, so it’s very safe. The building has a security guard on site 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Tesco Express right downstairs, if you need to nip in for some quick shopping.
Cons:
It’s slightly pricier than renting in a house. Roughly the same price as renting a flat privately in the same location. Very well worth the money though.
4. TOWN: Magnet Court (Sabrina’s Accom)
Situated in the heart of town, literally next to the fashion store ‘Next’, Magnet Court is very affordable in terms of location. There are literally 2 sharwarma places downstairs, a Subway, and 4 express grocery stores within a 5 mins walk! Uni isn’t so far either (Main campus: 10 mins and Med school: 17 mins)
Pros:
Literally near everything (Tesco Metro which sells decently priced groceries, Eldon Square, the mall, The Gate, with a cinema and restaurants, bus stops outside, metro stations, etc.)
It’s super warm and cozy, even during the Winter, because the building is well insulated
All the utilities including the stove, kettle, microwave, were brand new when we moved in
Good quality accommodation
Staff are very supportive and quick when responding to any problems
Cons:
Expensive since its in town
It can be noisy
Fire alarm tests weekly can be disruptive (happens on a Wed noon)
Walls are thin, so you can hear the people living beside you (but you can always send a noise complaint!)
5. QUAYSIDE: Garth Heads
(From Cam’s Review, please check her blog out: here)
“It has been 4 months since I have moved into Newcastle Dwell Student Living, Garth Heads and I do love it here! It is literally 5 mins to the Quay (one of the main attractions in Newcastle!)”
Pros:
Cheap, from £69 for 50 weeks, inclusive of all the bills!
Has a gym
Utilities, cleaning items and bedding is included!
Many get-together sessions for CNY, Christmas, etc.
Free breakfast sometimes!
Supportive staff
Chill and relaxed location with many cafes, clubs, restaurants nearby
Cons:
Far away from med school and town, where larger grocery stores are (up to 30 minute walk to Med school)
Some problems with accom (ie. kitchen sinks clogged, heater not working), but they are usually sorted out quickly
6. SPITAL TONGUES (Yong Yong, Mei Yen and Jun Wei’s Accom)
This is a landlord owned accommodation, recommended for those who are on a tight budget and want to be near medical school.
This accommodation has been passed on from batch to batch. If you are interested in getting the Whatsapp number of the landlord for this accom, please click on this link and please provide your Whatsapp number:
Pros:
Cheap (£69/week)
Really near medical school (7 mins walk)
Laundry and dryer as well as all other utilities (ie. microwave, oven, stove) are included, no need to pay extra for them
Cons:
Furniture and utilities are old
Using the heater often would result in a high cost, possibly the same as all inclusive accom
Calculating electricity and water bills can be difficult, apps are used like Acasa
Liasing with a landlord can also be difficult
Far away from town, so usually groceries delivered!
These reviews cover most of the accommodation that we took (Batch 2017-20). If you have any more questions or feedback, please fill in the contact form below!
Acknowledgements
Thank you to:
Zahra for sharing valued advise on landlord accom
Cam for letting me use her blog about Garth Heads
Dania for her thorough review on her accom
Kabi for review on St Mary's College
Yong Yong, Mei Yen and Jun Wei for letting me interview regarding their accom
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