The Student Hub ➞ Student living

Throughout your contract and moving out

Living in the community

Help and advice

Moving out

We are all members of the communities in which we live. Take pride in your neighbourhood – it’s your home while you are here. Here are some tips to help.

Be a considerate neighbour.

Introduce yourself to your neighbours and build a positive relationship - this helps create a sense of community and makes any issues much easier to resolve in a friendly manner.
If you’re having a party try to make it on a Friday or Saturday night, let your neighbours know in advance.
Find out whether your neighbours work shifts, which is very likely if they are nurses, for example. This may mean they have to sleep during the day.
Respect other peoples' property - fences, walls, street furniture and parked cars in particular. Causing damage to property including littering is a criminal offence.
Always have consideration for others when parking. Don’t block roads, driveways or garage entrances and never park in bays marked ‘disabled’ unless you have a special permit.
Avoid offensive behaviour including shouting, swearing, drinking in the streets and tasteless notes or posters in your windows.
If your neighbour does complain – respond politely and appropriately, and take responsibility for your actions.
Be aware of noise and how far it travels. Most student housing is mixed amongst non-student housing, usually with adjoining walls, so noise travels. Try to remember this when you’re at home and returning from a night out. Keep the music down and avoid shouting, and slamming doors.

Be your own environmentally friendly waste controller

Don’t leave rubbish in the garden or outside your property, find out when your regular rubbish collection day is on the Southampton City Council website and bag up your rubbish properly.
Put your wheelie bins out on the correct day and remember to bring them back off the street before the end of that day, and if an item of waste is too large for the bin, ring the council to arrange for it to be collected.
Southampton may have different waste collection systems to those in your home town, so don’t forget to find out what you can put in the recycling bin. Find out if your property has a garden waste collection bag too. For more information about the services provided by Southampton City Council visit http://www.southampton.gov.uk/s-environment/

The University is committed to being a good neighbour and working to ensure its impact on the local area is both enriching and beneficial. If there is an issue you would like to have resolved, please follow the complaints procedure, which is designed for use by all members of the community, including students and University staff.

Questions?

If you have any questions or problems during your tenancy, depending on the problem it is always recommended that you speak with your landlord or agency first, or your housemates to try and resolve any issues. However, there are dedicated services available at the University who you can go to, who will offer as much help, advice and guidance as possible.

Students’ Union Advice Centre

Tel +44 (0) 23 8059 2085

Website: www.unionsouthampton.org/help-and-support/advice-centre/2015/index.html

Email advice@susu.org

University of Southampton Student Hub

Tel +44(0)23 8059 9599

Email: studenthub@soton.ac.uk

Book in or schedule time to move

Moving always takes longer than expected, so make your move as stress-free as possible by allowing more than enough time to move and make sure you have everything organised well in advance of leaving.

Re-check your contract

Your landlord might have stipulated how you should leave the property after your tenancy ends. Make sure you check the contract to see if you are required to get in an external cleaner or leave furniture in a certain place.

Take an inventory

This is just as important as the one you did when you moved in, as it means you can now evidence the levels of wear and tear/damage that occurred during your tenancy if there is a dispute over your deposit.

Take photographs/video with dates

As when you moved in, take photos of any potential problem areas. It can be helpful to back up detailed photos with a “walkthrough” video of the property to get an overall idea of the cleanliness etc.

Take the latest meter readings

You may be asked to provide readings to utility companies when you move out such that you are not charged for the next tenants’ usage.

Cancel/move your utilities

This will be a much shorter conversation than when you moved in, you just need to state to the utility companies (gas, electricity) that you are moving out and provide the final meter readings. For any accounts that you can move (internet/phone/tv), do so as soon as you can to avoid any unexpected bills.

Remember to let other companies know you’ve moved

The most common ones that are forgotten are car registration with the DVLA and billing addresses with banks, make sure you let them know you’ve moved! It can be very embarrassing to pick up your online shopping delivery from your old property a few months into your new tenancy!

Claim any refunds from TV Licencing

You may be entitled to a refund for any unused months on your TV licence .

Lock the doors and windows

Ensure the property is secure before you leave.

Claiming back your deposit and deposit disputes

The deposit you made when securing your property at the start of the tenancy should be returned to you if you carry out everything that is expected of you and return the property in the clean and tidy state it was in when you moved in.

If your landlord withholds part or all of your deposit, you may dispute their reasoning or the level of deductions that they have requested. As your deposit would have been registered with a Government Deposit Protection Scheme, this dispute can now be managed by that company. More information can be found here . If you require assistance with a deposit dispute, please contact the SUSU Advice Centre.