CHOOSE A HOUSE SHARE OR FLAT SHARE AND MAKE NEW FRIENDS!
Sharing a home is a great way to meet people, make friends and get yourself a base. Our homes are located in the very best areas of Manchester City Centre including the Northern Quarter, Castlefield & New Islington. Our South Manchester locations include Didsbury, West Didsbury, Withington, Chorlton and Wilmslow. We've got great rooms available from "compact doubles" for around £329 per month all inclusive, through to large ensuite doubles priced from £499 per month all inclusive. If you are a young professional, it’s an ideal way to live. We are looking for hardworking, fun loving individuals who enjoy the home sharing experience.
WHY ARE OUR ROOMS TAKEN SO QUICKLY?
* We offer short term flexible contracts from as little as a per week rental to 18 months! * We take offers on our rooms! * You can move around our rooms at no cost - if you want to relocate from City Centre to Didsbury or vice versa – it’s free and simple subject to ensuring your current room is re-let! * You can upgrade your room when others in the home become available such as to an ensuites, a larger room etc. * Our house mates are clean, hard working professionals! * Our homes are clean and well maintained!
If you've never home shared before, here are some guidelines on what we expect and what you can expect:
1. Respect your home and your house mates.
Our
homes are no smoking environments occupied by hard working young
professionals. They are not party houses and consideration when it comes
to noise, cleanliness and tidiness is a basic requirement.
2. Keep it clean & tidy.
You
must contribute to the cleanliness & tidiness of our homes. If the
home doesn't have a regular cleaner (arranged by yourselves or
ourselves), each person is required to do their bit on the cleaning
rota. Homes are inspected on a regular basis to ensure they are in tip
top condition!
3. Help to keep your home a Happy Home and help with the viewings for new House Mates!
We
are running a business. If we can't let the bedrooms because the house
is untidy, because you are unsociable or because prospective homesharers
can't view the rooms, then our business doesn't work and you'd have
nowhere to live. Therefore we ask you to respect these IMPORTANT POINTS:
By renting a room in our homes, you are agreeing that when a room is coming available you will:
a)
Do your bit on the Viewing Rota. Our viewings typically take place on
Mondays and Wednesdays 7-8pm and Saturdays 12-1pm. If you are sharing
with 4 others it means that 1 week in 5 when a room is coming available
you will cover these three 1 hour periods to show prospective House
Mates around. Obviously we are flexible as to when you contribute in the
viewing rota so long as you do your fair share.
b) Do your bit
on the Cleaning Rota. You will help to keep the common areas including
lounge, kitchen, toilets and bathrooms clean & tidy.
c) Be a
sociable house mate (we don't want homes full of people stuck away in
their bedrooms) and allocate time to meet any prospective house mates,
so they can decide whether they like the home AND the house mates.
d)
Be flexible. Although we try and stick to allocated times for viewing
rooms, we always try and accommodate prospective house mates if they
need to view at short notice (as we will do with you), therefore when a
room is coming available we may turn up at the home without any notice
or ask you to show somebody the room if you are around.
GENERAL GUIDELINES
In order to help you to take out a Licence to Occupy a bedroom in one of our properties, please note the following points:
1.
Your residence in one of our managed properties is subject to a Licence
to Occupy. The return of a completed application form is required prior
to you moving in.
2. Your Licence Fee is paid on a regular date
in the month in advance by Standing Order or Direct Debit. Annual
Licence Fee increases take place in January and/or July and will not
exceed 5%. Late payment of fees will result in a £35 charge. You may
terminate your contract at any time subject to 4 weeks notice and
payment of a £99 Early Termination Fee plus £10 for each unfulfilled
month of your contract. You must also refund any Special Reduction that
has been agreed at the start of your Licence.
3. You may be
responsible for a contribution to gas, electric, water, telephone and TV
bills as well as any special TV or Broadband package and you should
budget on about £2.50 per day. The bills will be managed by your Head of
House. These bills are split and paid directly to the utility
providers. You are also responsible for your own contents insurance.
Your Licence to Occupy agreement is for a fixed term. Once this term
elapses, your Licence will automatically renew on for the same fixed
term length at a small additional cost.You may opt to contact us to
agree a flexible Seamless Replacement Basis which has no fixed length
and allows you to move out at any time so long as you find a suitable
replacement for yourself to start their Licence as you move out.
4.
You are expected to ensure that when you leave the property all bills
are up to date and your room is in a clean and tidy state. It is your
responsibility to set up the Standing Order at your bank.
5. We
do not hold a deposit. Instead a non-refundable Damage Insurance Guarantee is
payable valid for the period of your Licence to Occupy. This Guarantee is £99
(for a less than 6 month contract), £79 (6 month to 11 month), £59 (12
month or more). We have special payment plans if you cannot pay your
First and Last months Licence Fee in advance. You can pay one month only
in advance for a £99 fee or one and a half months for a £49 fee
(subject to status) provided you undertake to build up your last months
rent over a set period.
a.12 Month Licence Example
If the
agreed Monthly Licence Fee is £400 for a 12 month licence, then you are
required to pay a Damage Insurance Guarantee of £59 plus a First Months
Licence Fee of £400 plus the Last Months Licence Fee of £400. That
amounts to £859.Then after 1 month you begin your Monthly Licence Fee
payments of £400 of which you make 10 further payments. In your last
month, you do not pay any fee as this has already been paid up front.
b. 6 Month Licence Example
If
the agreed Monthly Licence Fee is £400 for a 6 month licence, then you
are required to pay a Damage Insurance Guarantee of £79 plus a First Months
Licence Fee of £400 + 5% plus the Last Months Licence Fee of £400 + 5%.
That amounts to £909.Then after 1 month you begin your Monthly Licence
Fee payments of £400 + 5% of which you make 4 further payments. In your
last month, you do not pay any fee as this has already been paid up
front.
c. 3 Month Licence Example
If the agreed Monthly
Licence Fee is £400 for a 3 month licence, then you are required to pay a Damage Insurance Guarantee of £99 plus a First Months Licence Fee of £400 +
10% plus the Last Months Licence Fee of £400 + 10%. That amounts to
£979. Then after 1 month you make 1 further payment of £400 + 10%. In
your last month, you do not pay any fee as this has already been paid up
front.
6. You are expected to contribute to the high standard of
cleanliness maintained in our homes. Our homes are no-smoking
environments and all Home Sharers are responsible for the cleanliness
and tidiness of our homes,including gardens. If standards are not
maintained, we reserve the right to employ contractors to carry out the
work and charge you directly. Any form of significant breakage or damage
or malfunctioning to the interior of the property or the furniture or
appliances provided in the property will be charged to the Home Sharers.
When a room becomes available in the house, viewings may be carried
without notice, subject to the availability of the prospective house
mate.
7. Each homeshareuk.com home has a Head of House appointed
for a12 month term from one of the existing Home Sharers (either by
selection or preference). Your main point of contact with
homeshareuk.com is through the Head of House. The Head of House will
help you resolve any issues relating to your tenancy. If your Head of
House cannot help, then please feel free to contact us directly at info@homeshareuk.com.
8. Fair Usage and Licence Fee Increases
If utility bills are included in your Licence Fee, don't forget we have a fair usage policy. We expect that during the day, whilst most people are out, the heating and lights will be turned off,the same being true of the night time sleep hours. We only have a certain budget for the bills and if that is exceeded by unreasonable usage then you will be asked to pay a surplus amount. We will write to you first to let you know that you are beyond the fair usage limit and give you a chance to balance the usage out. If the usage continues at a level beyond the budgeted usage then a surplus will be charged to each house mate. Please in the first instance do your bit to keep the utility cost down. Licence Fee increases will keep pace with RPI + 1.25% and take place in January and/or July and will not exceed 5%. Our July 2014 increase was 3.2% in line with RPI plus 1.25% and our increase for July 2015 was 2.82% in line with RPI plus 1.25%.
9. Viewing Rota
If a room is coming available in your home, we will begin to advertise it about 4-6 weeks prior to it becoming available. Our viewings take place on Monday and Wednesdays 7-8pm and Saturdays12-1pm and you will be expected to cover for these times for 1 week in 5 (in a typical share of 5 persons). Alternatively it may suit you better to cover the 1 hour viewing period on Monday for 3 weeks running. So long as you do your fair share, you can arrange it with your Head of House.
10. Cleaning Rota
Our homes are clean & tidy and we want them to stay that way. Your Head of House will organise a cleaning rota and you are expected to do your fair share. Alternatively you may as a group wish to organise a cleaner which you can find for around £10 per hour. A 5 hour session per month (£50) should cover a house share of 6 therefore costing you about £1.50 a week extra. On a day to day basis, you still need to do your bit. The kitchen should always be kept clean and tidy with dishes washed after a meal is cooked.
11. Replacement House Mates
When a room is coming available, you will have the opportunity, within reason,to choose who comes into your home by participating in the viewing rota. You can also actively get involved in the advertising if you would prefer a girl to a guy or vice versa. Within reason, we will take on board you preferences and try our best to get the house mates you prefer. However, if a replacement has not been found two weeks prior to the room coming available, then we will use our discretion and experience to pick a house mate whom we believe will fit in.Basically, the more you get involved by advertising, helping with viewings,presenting the home in its best light – the more chance you have of finding are placement you want.
12. Early Termination
We understand that your circumstances may change at any time, due to the nature of your work or your personal life. Therefore you can terminate your contract at any time with 4 weeks written notice providing you pay a £99 Early Termination Fee plus £10 for each unfulfilled month of your contract. You will also need to refund any Special Reduction in your room rate agreed on the basis of your initial agreement. For the avoidance of doubt, if a Special Reduction of £20 per month in the Licence Fee has been agreed due to a 12 month Agreed Term being taken, but the Licensee wishes to terminate the Licence to Occupy at the end of 10 months, then an Early Termination Fee of £99 is payable plus a refund of 2 x £20 plus 2 x £10 unfulfilled = £60. Therefore in total £159 is payable to terminate the contract early.
13. End of Licence Period
6 weeks before the end of your Licence period, subject to the good conduct of your account with us, you will have the opportunity to renew your contract for a further fixed term. If you would like to extend your stay on a month by month rolling contract basis you will need to contact us to discuss this in detail, as each property/contract is managed on a case by case basis.
14. Move In and Move Out
We have a large number of people moving in and out of rooms at all times and although we would love to do it, it would be difficult for us to meet and greet all our new house mates on arrival.You will therefore be given the contact number of the person leaving the room you are to move into to liaise on an appropriate move in time and a convenient time to collect keys etc. You will also be given the number of the Head of House for your particular property. As a guideline, we ask that a room is vacated by 12 noon on a move out day so you should be able to move in after that time. You should find and leave the room in a clean & tidy condition. If you have a problem you should contact us.
15. Void Management
We can only operate our business on the basis of 100% occupancy and in shared accommodation you need to understand and accept your role in ensuring that you are doing everything possible to ensure that all rooms available/coming available are let as quickly as possible. It is the shared responsibility of all house mates and Homeshare UK to ensure this and the Licence Fee (Rent) that you pay is based on this 100% occupancy. Therefore we reserve the right to apply a Void Charge of £25 per week per person for any room that is vacant as a direct result of House Mates failing to do everything possible to ensure that all rooms available/coming available are let as quickly as possible.
16. Health & Safety & Security
You need to ensure that your home is a safe and secure place to live. Please make sure that you check the functioning of your smoke detector regularly and agree your home security policy with your Head of House. i.e. when and which windows can be left ajar, your alarm settings etc. Corridors and stairwells need to be kept clear at all times.
17. Approved Repairs and Damage
If there is significant damage, that is any damage which will cost more than £50 to fix or replace, then you will need to pay for it. If the person responsible cannot be found, all persons living in the property will have to pay a share of the total bill. Approved Repairs include malfunctioning appliances/heating systems/water supplies (but not where the malfunction is the result of misuse or lack of routine upkeep of vacuum cleaners/washers/dryers), external guttering, roofing, external brickwork.
18. Disputes
If you disagree or are unhappy with the way we are operating, you may put your dispute in writing for the Head of House Committee to resolve. The Head of House Committee is made up of at least 3 Head of House persons who are all based in our properties. Your complaint will be resolved within 4 weeks.
