Accommodations in London: finding rooms/flats to rent & homestay families

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< Up	Life / Accommodation / London
Finding somewhere to live in London


Sections:	Maps
	London postcodes
	London boroughs
	Lettings agents
	Homestay accommodation
	Advertisements
	Hostels
	Managed accommodation for students
	Choosing an area
	Links

Related pages:	Guide to renting accommodation
	Travel/Accommodation (short-term accommodation)

MAPS

You will need several maps to help you find accommodation in London efficiently. You may find it convenient to obtain printed copies of these, although you can also refer to them online:
- A Tube map (for details about how to see this online, see the "journey planner" section of Travel/Transport/London/Underground)
- A London Connections map (for train services from London)
- A bus map. Maps for Central London, North-West London, North-East London, South-West London and South-East London are available free from bus stations (for details about how to see this online, see the "journey planner" section of Travel/Transport/London/Buses)
- A street map of London. The most popular is a London A to Z colour street atlas, which can be bought from newsagents in London or from the link below. Free online street maps are available from http://www.multimap.com or http://www.streetmap.co.uk or http://maps.google.co.uk

A-Z London
Publisher: Geographers' A-Z Map Company
Date: August 2008

LONDON POSTCODES

A postcode map of London is shown below. Postcodes are used by the postal service to deliver mail. They are often quoted in accommodation adverts and can be used to identify a location in online services such as maps, local service directories and transport route finders. If you know an address but not its postcode, you can use the postcode finder tool http://postcode.royalmail.com. The first two letters of a London postcode are WC (west central), EC (east central), N (north), E (east), SE (south east), SW (south west), W (west), or NW (north west) - the number that follows this is not logical, so you need to refer to a map to see where it is. Other postcodes used in outer London are (in clockwise order): EN (Enfield), IG (Ilford), RM (Romford), DA (Dartford), BR (Bromley), CR (Croydon), SM (Sutton), KT (Kingston), TW (Twickenham), UB (Uxbridge), HA (Harrow), and WD (Watford).

The table below is a guide to the names of the local areas which correspond approximately to the postcode areas shown above:

WC1 Bloomsbury ; WC2 Holborn & Strand

EC1 Clerkenwell ; EC2 Barbican ; EC3 Tower Hill ; EC4 Blackfriars

E1 Whitechapel ; E2 Bethnal Green ; E3 Bow ; E4 Chingford ; E5 Clapton ; E6 East Ham ; E7 Forest Gate ; E8 Dalston ; E9 Homerton ; E10 Leyton ; E11 Snaresbrook ; E12 Manor Park ; E13 Plaistow ; E14 Poplar ; E15 Stratford ; E16 Canning Town ; E17 Walthamstow ; E18 Woodford

N1 Islington ; N2 East Finchley ; N3 Finchley ; N4 Finsbury Park ; N5 Arsenal ; N6 Highgate ; N7 Holloway ; N8 Turnpike Lane ; N9 Lower Edmonton ; N10 Muswell Hill ; N11 Bounds Green ; N12 North Finchley ; N13 Palmers Green ; N14 Southgate ; N15 South Tottenham ; N16 Stoke Newington ; N17 Tottenham ; N18 Upper Edmonton ; N19 Upper Holloway ; N20 Whetstone ; N21 Winchmore Hill ; N22 Wood Green

NW1 Camden Town ; NW2 Dollis Hill ; NW3 Hampstead ; NW4 Hendon ; NW5 Kentish Town ; NW6 Kilburn ; NW7 Mill Hill ; NW8 St Johns Wood ; NW9 Colindale ; NW10 Willesden ; NW11 Golders Green

W1 West End ; W2 Paddington ; W3 Acton ; W4 Chiswick ; W5 Ealing ; W6 Hammersmith ; W7 Hanwell ; W8 Kensington ; W9 Maida Vale ; W10 North Kensington ; W11 Notting Hill ; W12 Shepherds Bush ; W13 West Ealing ; W14 West Kensington

SW1 Victoria ; SW2 Brixton ; SW3 Chelsea ; SW4 Clapham ; SW5 Earls Court ; SW6 Fulham ; SW7 South Kensington ; SW8 South Lambeth ; SW9 Stockwell ; SW10 West Brompton ; SW11 Battersea ; SW12 Balham ; SW13 Barnes ; SW14 Mortlake ; SW15 Putney ; SW16 Streatham ; SW17 Tooting ; SW18 Wandsworth ; SW19 Wimbledon ; SW20 West Wimbledon

SE1 Bermondsey ; SE2 Abbey Wood ; SE3 Blackheath ; SE4 Brockley ; SE5 Camberwell ; SE6 Catford ; SE7 Charlton ; SE8 Deptford ; SE9 Eltham ; SE10 Greenwich ; SE11 Kennington ; SE12 Lee ; SE13 Lewisham ; SE14 New Cross ; SE15 Peckham ; SE16 Rotherhithe ; SE17 Walworth ; SE18 Woolwich ; SE19 Norwood ; SE20 Penge ; SE21 Dulwich ; SE22 East Dulwich ; SE23 Forest Hill ; SE24 Herne Hill ; SE25 South Norwood ; SE26 Sydenham ; SE27 West Norwood ; SE28 Thamesmead

London Postcode and Administrative Boundaries Map
Publisher: Geographers' A-Z Map Company
Date: May 2008

LONDON BOROUGHS

For local government London is divided into areas called boroughs:

You may find it helpful to check the website of the borough where you plan to live. You can use the links below to find out how much council tax you may need to pay and for information about local government services.
UKCISA provides a guidance note about council tax for international students: http://www.ukcisa.org.uk/student/info_sheets/council_tax.php

Borough	Website	"Band D" council tax 2008/9
Barking & Dagenham	http://www.barking-dagenham.gov.uk	£1326
Barnet	http://www.barnet.gov.uk	£1393
Bexley	http://www.bexley.gov.uk	£1399
Brent	http://www.brent.gov.uk	£1343
Bromley	http://www.bromley.gov.uk	£1263
Camden	http://www.camden.gov.uk	£1332
City of London	http://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk	£923
Croydon	http://www.croydon.gov.uk	£1406
Ealing	http://www.ealing.gov.uk	£1370
Enfield	http://www.enfield.gov.uk	£1384
Greenwich	http://www.greenwich.gov.uk	£1291
Hackney	http://www.hackney.gov.uk	£1308
Hammersmith & Fulham	http://www.lbhf.gov.uk	£1173
Haringey	http://www.haringey.gov.uk	£1471
Harrow	http://www.harrow.gov.uk	£1462
Havering	http://www.havering.gov.uk	£1483
Hillingdon	http://www.hillingdon.gov.uk	£1423
Hounslow	http://www.hounslow.gov.uk	£1400
Islington	http://www.islington.gov.uk	£1248
Kensington & Chelsea	http://www.rbkc.gov.uk	£1068
Kingston-upon-Thames	http://www.kingston.gov.uk	£1580
Lambeth	http://www.lambeth.gov.uk	£1235
Lewisham	http://www.lewisham.gov.uk	£1327
Merton	http://www.merton.gov.uk	£1405
Newham	http://www.newham.gov.uk/AboutNewham	£1255
Redbridge	http://www.redbridge.gov.uk	£1376
Richmond-upon-Thames	http://www.richmond.gov.uk	£1544
Southwark	http://www.southwark.gov.uk	£1222
Sutton	http://www.sutton.gov.uk	£1419
Tower Hamlets	http://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk	£1175
Waltham Forest	http://www.walthamforest.gov.uk	£1441
Wandsworth	http://www.wandsworth.gov.uk	£687
Westminster	http://www.westminster.gov.uk	£688

LETTINGS AGENTS

To rent a private room in a house, you may want to contact lettings agents or estate agents in the area.
You can find an agent using UpMyStreet. Click here: http://www.upmystreet.com/findmynearest/search?category=lettings+agents&location=london, then enter a full local postcode in the "located in" box and click on "search". The nearest ones will be listed first.

Note that some lettings agents do not deal with student accommodation, and some specialise in dealing with people from a particular country. It may be better to choose an agent which is a member of NALS (the National Approved Letting Scheme), see: http://www.nalscheme.co.uk. An agent may charge a fee when you have found somewhere (typically about a week's rent), but is not allowed to charge to show you a list of properties or to take details of your requirements. One advantage of using an agency is that you may be less likely to have problems with the landlord, and there should be a proper tenancy agreement. The disadvantages are that the accommodation may be more expensive (the landlord/landlady will charge higher rent to cover the cost of the agency), and that the choice of properties is more limited.

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HOMESTAY ACCOMMODATION

Homestay accommodation is a room in the house of a family (who are known as the host family).

Some organisations which help to arrange homestay accommodation in London are as follows (note that companies often specialise in certain areas of London):
Britannia Student Services: http://www.britanniatravel.com
UK Homestay: http://www.uk-homestay.com
Hosts International: http://www.hosts-international.com
London Host Families: http://www.londonhostfamilies.com
Host & Guest Service Limited: http://www.host-guest.co.uk
English Homestay Services: http://www.englishhomestayservices.com
City Homestay: http://www.cityhomestay.com
UK Guests: http://www.ukguests.co.uk

As a rough guide to prices:
- Expect to pay about £125 per week in zone 4 or 5 for self-catering accommodation in a standard single room, or £95 per week in a shared double/twin room.
- Add £15 per week if you want to live in zone 3, £30 per week for zone 2 (more central accommodation; rooms may be a bit smaller).
- Add £20 per week if you want breakfast ("bed & breakfast" or "B&B"), or £40 per week if you want breakfast and evening meals ("half board"), or £60 per week if you want breakfast, evening meals and packed lunches ("full board").
- Add £40 per week for superior accommodation (eg: a larger room, own toilet/bathroom, better food than standard).

There may be an additional one-off booking fee of perhaps £50 to the agent for arranging your accommodation.
Check if you need to pay and deposit and if so whether that will be returned to you when you leave.

The BBHA (Bed & Breakfast Homestay Association) has set minimum standards for homestay accommodation approved by Tourist Boards in London: http://www.bbha.org.uk.

If you are interested in helping an older person or someone with a disability, homesharing is another possibility. You live with this person and provide companionship and an agreed amount of practical help each week, in return for cheap accommodation. See: http://www.vitalise.org.uk/Vitalise-Centres-and-Services/Home-Services/Homeshare.aspx

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ADVERTISEMENTS

Local newspapers
If you have already decided you want to live in a particular area, buy the local newspaper from a newsagent (you may also be able to look at it in the local library or online). The Evening Standard is a London-wide evening newspaper which has some property adverts each day.

Loot
London accommodation adverts are available in Loot: http://www.loot.com/property
The paper version of Loot is published 3 times a week (each one has a different colour). Sections you may wish to check include: Student accommodation (shared with other students), Bedsits & rooms, Flat & houseshare, Short lets (for example, accommodation that is available for less than three months), Flats to rent, and Houses to rent.

Online agents
The following websites list adverts for accommodation suitable for students:
Accommodation for Students: http://www.accommodationforstudents.com
Bunk: http://www.bunk.com
Student Pad: http://www.studentpad.co.uk
Student Accommodation: http://www.studentaccommodation.org
Housepals: http://www.housepals.co.uk
Moveflat: http://www.moveflat.com
Generally these websites will allow you to search their adverts for free, but may charge you when you request contact details.

Newsletters/magazines/notice boards
Adverts are also contained in"TNT", a free magazine aimed mainly at travellers from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa (http://www.tntmagazine.com).
"Time Out" is a weekly magazine of event listings which also contains some accommodation ads.
Popular free online message boards include "gumtree" (http://www.gumtree.com) and "Craigslist" (http://london.craigslist.org).
Some countries' communities have their own London newsletters, or popular shops or places of worship where accommodation adverts are placed.
Schools/universities may have ads on their own notice boards, or may have accommodation offices which have been informed about available rooms.

Abbreviations
Accommodation adverts often contain abbreviations which will often not be found in a dictionary and might be confusing. Some of these abbreviations are explained below:

apt: apartment, flat; avail: available; b&b: bed & breakfast; b/sit: bedsit; bath: bathroom; bed: bedroom; BR: train station (British Rail); bth: bathroom; toilet; ch: central heating; cond: condition; cpl / cple: couple; d/g: double glazed; dbl or dble: double; dec: decorated; dep: deposit; DLR: Docklands Light Railway; DSS: person receiving unemployment benefit (from the Department of Social Security); eves: evenings; exc: excellent; excluding; excl: excluding heating/hot water bills; F: female; f/f: fully furnished, fridge-freezer; flr: floor; flt: flat; furn: furnished; gch: gas central heating; gd: good; gdn: garden; h&c: hot & cold water; HA: Housing Association; heat: heating; imm / immed: immediate; inc / incl: including heating/hot water bills; info: information; kit: kitchen; loc: location; lrg: large; lux: luxurious; M: male; mais: maisonette; min: minute, minimum; mod: modern; mth: month; n/s: non-smoker; nec: necessary; non-s: non-smoker; nr: near; o/l: overlooks; osp: off-street parking; pw: per week; pcm: per calendar month; pkg: parking; pls: please; pp: per person; pref: preferred; prof: professional; rd: road; refs: references required; req / reqd: required; rm: room; sep: separate; sgl or sgle: single; shw: shower; stn: station; stud: studio; tel: telephone; trans: transport; tube: underground train (London); TV: television; unfurn: unfurnished; vgc: very good condition; w: with; WC: toilet; w/d: washer-dryer; w/e: weekends; wkly: weekly; wks: weeks; wm: washing machine, warm, well-maintained

Below are a couple of examples of accommodation adverts:

HOSTELS

A short-stay hostel in London can be used as a base when you first arrive in the UK, while you look for your own accommodation.
To find and book a short-stay hostels in London, see: Travel/Accommodation/Hostel

YMCAs provide some long-term accommodation (you do not need to be a Christian, and rooms are available both for men and women): http://www.ymca.org.uk

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MANAGED ACCOMMODATION FOR STUDENTS

Below is a list of privately-run managed accommodation for students in London (this list does not include accommodation which is used exclusively by students from particular universities). Note the following:
- in some cases rooms are only available for fixed 1 year periods from mid-September (the start of the academic year)
- in some cases priority is given to certain types of people: a particular nationality, religious belief, type of student (eg: full-time students, postgraduate students, international students, or students from certain universities), age group (eg: 18-25), or gender (eg: females only)
- accommodation is generally in single rooms, but some providers also offer double rooms, family rooms or multi-bedded rooms shared between several students

Click on the link in the "Accommodation Name" column to see full details, including the weekly costs. Click on the link in the "Postcode" column to see a map of the location.

Area	Accommodation Name/Website	Street	Postcode/Map	Nearest Tube
WC1	Elizabeth Croll House	27 Penton Rise	WC1X 9AX	Kings Cross St Pancras
WC1	Goodenough College	Mecklenburgh Square	WC1N 2AB	Russell Square
WC1	Helen Graham House	57 Great Russell Street	WC1B 3BA	Holborn
WC1	International Lutheran Student Centre	30 Thanet Street	WC1H 9QH	Kings Cross St Pancras
WC1	Woburn Place	19-29 Woburn Place	WC1H 0AQ	Russell Square
EC1	Canto Court	122 Old Street Islington	EC1V 9BD	Old Street
EC1	East Central House	115-131 Lever Street	EC1V 3RH	Old Street
EC1	Kirby Street	36-43 Kirby Street	EC1N 8TE	Farringdon
E1	Nido Spitalfields	100 Middlesex Street	E1 7EZ	Liverpool Street
E1	Pacific Court	15 Assembly Passage	E1 4EY	Stepney Green
E1	Quantum Court	10 King David Lane	E1 0EJ	Shadwell
E1	Rahere Court	Toby Lane	E1 4DW	Mile End
E1	Sherren House	16 Nicholas Road	E1 4AF	Stepney Green
E2	Blithehale Court	10 Witan Street	E2 6FG	Bethnal Green
E2	Claredale House	Claredale Street	E2 6PE	Bethnal Green
E2	Three Colts Lane	41-65 Three Colts Lane	E2 6JP	Bethnal Green
E7	Donald Hunter House	1 Post Office Approach	E7 0QQ	Forest Gate
E9	Sir John Cass Hall	150 Well Street	E9 7LQ	Hackney Central
E15	Poland House	293-305 High Street	E15 2TJ	Stratford
N1	Nido King's Cross	200 Pentonville Road	N1 9JP	Kings Cross St Pancras
N1	Sentosa (N1)	125/127 Richmond Avenue	N1 0LR	Angel
N6	Greenview Court	1-15 Winchester Place	N6 5HJ	Archway
N7	Piccadilly Court	457-463 Caledonian Road	N7 9BJ	Caledonian Road
N7	Woodland Court	32-34 Market Road	N7 9AW	Caledonian Road
N10	Chester House	Pages Lane	N10 1PR	Bounds Green
N12	Nansen Village	21 Woodside Avenue	N12 8AQ	Woodside Park
N15	Station Court	158 High Road	N15 4NU	Seven Sisters
N16	Charles Morton Court	37-43 Green Lanes	N16 9BS	Canonbury
N16	Newington Court	173 Green Lanes	N16 9DE	Canonbury
N17	Emily Bowes Court	Lebus Street	N17 9FD	Tottenham Hale
NW1	Ashwell House	Shepherdess Walk	N1 7NA	Old Street
NW1	Beaumont Court	1-45 College Grove	NW1 0RW	Camden Town
NW1	Goldsmiths House	Park Village East	NW1 3SX	Mornington Crescent
NW1	Impala House	8 Chalcot Square	NW1 8YB	Chalk Farm
NW1	Methodist International Centre	81-103 Euston Street	NW1 2EZ	Euston
NW1	Somerset Court	Aldenham Street	NW1 1AS	Euston
NW3	Arthur West House	79 Fitzjohns Avenue	NW3 6PA	Hampstead
NW3	Bartrams Hostel	Rowland Hill Street	NW3 2AD	Belsize Park
NW3	Belsize House	38-40 Belsize Park Gardens	NW3 4NA	Belsize Park
NW3	Danish YMCA	43 Maresfield Gardens	NW3 5TF	Finchley Road
NW3	Netherhall House	Nutley Terrace	NW3 5SA	Finchley Road
NW3	St Dorothy's Residence	99 Frognal	NW3 6XR	Hampstead
NW5	Bartholomew Road	111-113 Bartholomew Road	NW5 2BJ	Kentish Town
W1	International Students House	229 Great Portland Street	W1W 5PN	Great Portland Street
W1	Leinster House	46 Leinster Gardens	W2 3AT	Bayswater
W1	Sentosa (W1)	15-19 Upper Montagu Street	W1H 2PQ	Marylebone
W1	YMCA Indian Student Hostel	41 Fitzroy Square	W1T 6AQ	Warren Street
W2	New Mansion House	38 Lancaster Gate	W2 3ND	Lancaster Gate
W2	Park House	227 Earls Court Road	SW5 9BL	Earl's Court
W2	Railton House	10 Craven Hill	W2 3DT	Lancaster Gate
W2	Sanderman Allen House	40 Inverness Terrace	W2 3JB	Queensway
W2	Torquay House	1 Torquay Street	W2 5EJ	Royal Oak
W5	Moullin House	24/26 Mount Park Road	W5 2RT	Ealing Broadway
W6	Austrian Catholic Centre	29 Brook Green	W6 7BL	Hammersmith
W8	Lee Abbey London	57/67 Lexham Gardens	W8 6JJ	Gloucester Road
W11	Bowden Court	24 Ladbroke Road	W11 3NN	Notting Hill Gate
SW1	Holland House	53 Eccleston Square	SW1V 1PG	Victoria
SW3	IES London Residence Hall	Manresa Road	SW3 6NA	South Kensington
SW5	William Temple House	29 Trebovir Road	SW5 9NQ	Earl's Court
SW6	Orient House	Imperial Road	SW6 2EP	Fulham Broadway
SW7	Belvedere House	6 Grenville Place	SW7 4RT	Gloucester Road
SW7	Halpin House	97 Queens Gate	SW7 5AB	South Kensington
SW7	Jerome House	5-13 Glendower Place	SW7 3DU	South Kensington
SW7	More House	53 Cromwell Road	SW7 2EH	South Kensington
SW7	Regina House	110 Gloucester Road	SW7 4RJ	Gloucester Road
SW12	Blain House	140-142 Bedford Hill	SW12 9HW	Balham
SE1	Christian Alliance Centre	2 Secker Street	SE1 8UF	Waterloo
SE1	Friendship House	3 Belvedere Place	SE1 0AD	Borough
SE1	Great Suffolk Street	17 Great Suffolk Street	SE1 0NS	Southwark
SE17	Victoria Hall Southwark	120 - 138 Walworth Road	SE17 1JL	Elephant & Castle

The Carlyle Group/Generation Estates are creating a new 400-bed student accommodation block in Isledon Road (in Islington, next to Finsbury Park Tube/bus station), due to become available from September 2012. Three other sites (with 1,850 beds in total) are being planned and are expected to become operational by September 2013.

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CHOOSING AN AREA

Convenience: Consider places along the transport links to your school or workplace (information in the Maps section may help). You may want to be close to an underground station or a bus route (or a night bus route if you are often out after midnight).
Cost: Look for adverts in local newspapers or Loot to judge the prices, and consider the transport costs as well as the rental costs (information in the Costs section may help). Decide on a range of rents that you can afford to consider.
Community: Decide on one or more boroughs (information in the Costs, Safety and Ethnic Mix sections may help). Decide on one or more local areas. Make a list of postcodes in these areas (information in the Maps section may help).

Once you have chosen an area that you think is convenient:
- Check the transport cost and timetable (first and last services; frequency of service). See: Travel/Transport/London
- Check the facilities in the area. See: Life/Accommodation/Guide for details of how to do this
- Visit the area; look for room advertisements by buying the local newspaper, looking in the windows of local newsagents. If you want to use a local letting agent or estate agent, visit some in the area. Ask if they deal with the type of accommodation that you are looking for, and if so, if they can show you a list of properties in the area which are within your price range. You can ask to register with them, so they can send you further details as they become available. Ask them if there are any charges: legally they are not allowed to charge you unless you have accepted a property shown to you by them. Often the charges are paid by the person who is renting the property (so the rent for these properties may be a little higher).

House prices (and also rental costs) are highest in central London, especially north of the River Thames. The most expensive boroughs are Kensington & Chelsea, the City of Westminster and the City of London.
If you are prepared to share a room with one other person in a twin-bedded room, the rent is typically about 30% cheaper than a single room.
Often 1 month's rent is required as a deposit when renting a private room - this will only be returned at the end of your stay.
Remember to consider the cost of travelling as well as the rent. See Travel/Transport/London for details of tickets and fares, including prices if you hold a Student Photocard.

For maps showing the locations where Bangladeshi, Black African, Black Caribbean, Chinese, Indian, Irish, Pakistani and White British communities are concentrated, see: http://www.guardian.co.uk/graphic/0,5812,1395103,00.html

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LINKS

Accommodation issues: Life/Accommodation/Guide
Booking hostels: Travel/Accommodation/Hostel

Home page: Home

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© UK Student Life 2002-2012

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