Accommodation

Here are some top tips to make sure it’s a trouble free process and ensure that you get all your deposit back:  

• Leave it in the condition you found it in- check photos from when you moved in.  

• Put furniture back in its place.  

• Remove all rubbish from the property and if your house leads onto a pavement ensure that your wheelie bin or seagull rubbish bags are not left out. If they are removed, you could be charged the replacement cost.  

• If there are any damaged items, try to replace them. It may be more cost effective as it may come out of your deposit.  

• Don’t forget the outside spaces, tidy gardens and clear rubbish from the front.   

• Deep clean the kitchen and bathroom (empty the fridge, clean the oven, clear cupboards of all food and personal belongings, get rid of any mould on tiles)  

If you are not able to clean the house, then you can hire cleaners to do it for you. If there is lots of you this could work out to be quite reasonable!  

*Take photos before you leave to show the condition you left it in just in case there are any disputes of the condition. 

Remember to take readings from your electric, gas and water meters before you leave, or else you may be paying for more than you used. Also phone any energy companies to tell them you have moved and the date you did this.  

Leave the keys or take them to the estate agents or landlord, so you are not charged for replacements.  

What to do with your stuff

Take ALL your belongings with you so that you are not charged for removing items that you have left. 

If you don’t want to take it, donate any unwanted/ no longer needed items to Exeter charities. As part of the Students on the Move scheme, the University has partnered with British Heart Foundation, CoLab Exeter and TurnTable to help take the stress out of moving out. Check the charities’ websites on what items you can donate. Different charities will take in different items: clothes, electrics, furniture, pots and pans, etc. You can take your items to stores or book collections via their web pages. 

The Students on the Move campaign also offers clean up services for waste (grey waste, food and glass). For more information on how to book services, visit the Community page. 

If you are needing to store your stuff over the summer, there are a number of self-storage companies in Exeter that can look after your stuff. Even help pack and deliver it again on your return to Exeter.  

• Dainton Self Storage

• Edward Baden Student Service

• HouseIt

• Our Spare Room Student Storage

• Safe Store

• Student Storage Box

• Stuff 2 Move 

• Westcountry Storage Solutions

Disclaimer: this information is for reference only; these companies are in no way affiliated to the University or Students Guild. Therefore, cannot be held responsible for the quality of service they provide. 

Getting your deposit back

You need to be informed of any deductions from your deposit, they also need tell you exactly what they are for. You do have the option to disagree, and it can be negotiated between yourself and the landlord. Once the agreement has been made the landlord has 10 working days to release the deposit back to you.  

If you cannot come to an agreement then you will need to raise this the deposit scheme and it will go to the ICE (Independent Case Examiner) to decided what, if anything should be paid.  

Watch out for any prohibited fees, your landlord does not have the right to charge you ‘checking out or cleaning fee’ according to the Tenants Fee Act.  

IF you have any issues that cannot be resolved informally then you can get support from the Advice team by emailing advice@exeterguild.com or by booking an appointment here.