Last updated: May 2026
If you’re in your first year of uni, you’re probably already wondering where you’ll be crashing next year.
Most first-year students live on or near campus in student halls, but you’ll probably want to live in a privately rented student house in your second year. You’ll need to choose a group of friends to live with (unless you want to live alone) and start viewing potential houses.
But the big question is: when’s the best time of year to book student accommodation? If you kickstart your house hunt too early, you might pick the wrong area; leave it too late, and you’ll be stuck with the leftovers. Here’s how to get it sorted without the drama, and when to start looking for student accommodation.
When to look for student accommodation
The UK has a national student housing shortage and some cities are especially competitive, so starting your search early is a smart move. You don’t want to miss out on the best spots.
According to Save the Student’s National Student Accommodation Survey 2025, 29% of students started looking for houses before December.
October/November
Although October might seem ridiculously early, this is the best time to scope out popular student areas and average room prices. In most UK cities, landlords and estate agents will start advertising properties for the following academic year on student platforms like UniHomes around October-November, so you can start scoping out potential places to live.
If you’ve already found your ride or die friends and you’re stressed about finding accommodation, there’s no harm in getting things sorted early. You may even get an ‘early bird’ discount for securing your room early in the year.
January
After the Christmas break, everyone who hasn’t already started searching joins the house hunt. You might find that properties are getting snapped up quickly, and you might struggle to get viewings for houses in the best locations. Now’s the time to move quickly to find your perfect home.
Keep an eye on comparison sites and get in touch with the agent the second you see a winner.
March
Unless you’re in London, this is cutting it late. Ideally, you want your housing sorted by the end of March. You might have to compromise on the size of the kitchen or find yourself a bit further from campus than you’d like.
June – September
If you still haven’t found anywhere to live and you’re starting to panic that you’ll end up homeless come September, don’t. It’s important to take a deep breath. Even if you leave it to the last minute, you should still be able to find a roof, but the property you choose might not meet all your initial preferences. For example, you might end up further out of the city centre than you would like to be. However, having a look at properties early in the year can help combat this.
At this point, an entire student house might be challenging to get. However, you should be able to find a spare room in a student house that you can rent out. Sometimes individual students leave their houses because they’ve fallen out with their housemates or are transferring universities. They’ll be looking for a replacement tenant to take over their contract.
What to do after you’ve secured your student accommodation?
After you’ve sorted your accommodation for next year, you might think it’s time to relax. But then comes the boring stuff: household bills.
If the thought of calling energy providers gives you the ick, let us handle it. We’ll do the hard work so you can keep your independence without the stress.
Split the Bills offers reliable bill-splitting services for new housemates. You can customise your package, including electricity, gas, broadband, water, and even your TV Licence. All you and your housemates need to do is pay one bill each month!
If you’re unsure if Split the Bills is the right option for you and your housemates, you can find out more about how our service works.
Electricity. Gas. Broadband. Water. TV Licence.
Want to find out more?
Interested in splitting your student household bills rather than splitting up friendships? Check out Split The Bills now and make life easier for everyone in your shared student house.
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