Tips When Renting Your New Home

The property rental market is growing bigger and bigger every year. One of the fastest growing demographics of new tenants is one that I have found myself in – those who have previously owned a home, but due to marital breakdown and sky-high buying costs, find themselves unable to buy a new home on a single income. There is no two ways about it – going from the security and stability of owning your home and dipping your toes into the rental market is daunting. For me, this is the first time since my student days that I have rented a home, but this time I have the added responsibility of two children which means finding a property that is in good condition and is in a decent school catchment area as well as being close to my work and is laid out in a way that works for a family.

The things that I was looking for this time around differed massively from what I was looking for in a property fifteen years ago! I do remember when I was 18, I wanted somewhere with lots of pubs and takeaways on my doorstep. This time around, I was looking for quite the opposite: a small rural village location, ideally close to a shop and post office, but as far as possible from bustling nightlife and takeaways. I thought I had a very simple list of requirements – I knew how many bedrooms I needed, the area I wanted to live in, the property would have to have central heating and double glazing as well as some outside space. In spite of thinking that my list was pretty simple and unremarkable, it actually took me around 4 months to find the right home for me and my family. This was down to the fact that whilst there seemed to be lots of properties that matched all of these criteria, there were some other, more subtle factors that I discovered were important to me:

• Stability: Moving home is a big upheaval when just adults are involved. But when there are children involved, and especially if the children have already had to deal with the changes in family structure, it was important to me that we would be able to stay in the home I chose long-term. With this in mind, I asked estate agents how long previous tenants had been in the homes I was looking at, what the landlord’s current situation was and whether there was a higher chance that they might be looking at selling, leaving me with the possibility of having to move again soon.

• Agency vs directly with the landlord: If you are renting privately, you can either look for a property through an estate agent or go to the landlord direct, possibly through local groups on social media. I decided to go through an estate agent, as having the children I felt it meant that I had confidence my deposit would be held in a proper deposit scheme and that I would always have someone to contact in an emergency. I know that there are lots of great direct landlords, but as I was basically new to renting, I felt more comfortable with a high street agent.

• House layout: it is definitely true that you need different things from the layout of your home when you have children. My lists of “musts” included a separate kitchen and lounge, as the open plan living that was so appealing pre-kids now seems downright dangerous and hard to keep clean, as well as a full-size bath in the bathroom (it’s surprising how many properties only have a shower) and plenty of storage so that all of their toys can be stored away and out of sight.

• Floor coverings: it might sound like a small point, but I would not rent a home with carpets in the lounge, kitchen or dining room. Young children can be messy with eating, and my kids love painting and using Play-Doh. I am always conscious that if anyone in my family were to drop paint or food, or tread Play-Doh into the carpet, I could lose a chunk of my deposit. I didn’t want to have to worry too much about that, so made sure that any rooms where stains might happen had floors that could be mopped or wiped clean. Of course, I know that even if you are really careful, accidents do happen and that most landlords do have insurance against damage to their property, and that there are savings for landlord insurance can be made by searching and buying online.

I have to say that despite my initial fears about moving back into the rental market, we are really happy in our new home. Because I was really focussed on what I needed from our home, I think it means we have found a home that meets all of our needs and we will be happy here for a long time to come.

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