THE best tip to rent a London flat is to steer clear from the city center as far as possible because one can hunt down the best bargains there. Staying in a flat is ideal for people who are studying here for a semester or so. There are two kinds of flats which you can find in London suburbs – unfurnished and fully furnished. Whether you’ll rent any of the two, you must first inspect the property (both visual and otherwise) before committing to any contract. You must conduct a background check and see whether your potential landlady is not on the verge of bankruptcy. Otherwise, you’ll eventually benefit the hassle of being ejected and finding another flat to move on. You must also conduct a thorough visual inspection on whether all the water pipes and electric wirings are all working properly.

Damaged electric wirings in particular may cause fires and you don’t want that, do you? You must also make sure that the flat that you’ll eventually rent is not infested with vermin. You certainly also don’t want rats and cockroaches to annoy you while you’re having a romantic evening there with your date, do you? This is not just a mere nuisance for some rats have been known to bite people even in urban areas. And bear in mind that some rats contain deadly rabies. If the flat is fully furnished already, the same procedure is still followed. You must check whether all appliances such as dishwasher, DVD player and LCD television are functioning properly. You must also make it clear with the landlady that he or she be responsible in fixing these appliances if they malfunction unless of course if you’re the reason for damaging them. You must also explicitly talk with the landlady regarding the payment method of your rent whether she accepts check. The usual scheme is to pay two months in advance for the first month and the landlady will secure your permission under law to have your credit background checked. A credit background check is normal but if you are uncomfortable with that, then you better check out another flat.

The second tip to rent a London flat if you want to be thrifty is to rent one room with a shared kitchen and bathroom. The tenants will eventually divide among themselves payment of water bill. There must be individual electricity meters for each room for a similar reason. If one avails of cable television and high-speed Internet connection, then the tenant must pay for it individually.

There are two kinds of flats in London – the coed flat and the flat for women only. If you are uncomfortable being surrounded with strangers especially in a coed flat, then you may as well rent as a group so you can hang around anytime without inhibitions. In areas where space is not so congested, you can even have an outdoor barbecue party that lasts till dawn if you want to. Just make sure you don’t disturb your neighbors in the process.