Moving into your first student home in Lancaster marks an exciting chapter filled with new experiences and opportunities. Whether you’re coming from a different city or just down the road, settling into a new environment can be both thrilling and daunting.
From understanding your lease agreement to discovering local hotspots and managing shared living spaces, there’s a lot to navigate.
This guide covers everything you need to know to make your move as smooth as possible.
We’ll explore practical tips for organising your new space, advice on getting to know Lancaster, and essential information for building a comfortable, safe, and enjoyable student life. Welcome to your new home – let’s get started!
Preparing To Move Into Your Lancaster Student Home
So you have secured your offer and decided on your student home. The next step is to begin the preparation for the move.
Checklist
The best way to start preparing for your move is by creating a checklist. This checklist should include everything that you will need to take from bedding and utensils to personal documents. We recommend you start this preparation a couple of weeks before your move-in date so that you don’t miss out on anything important.
Understanding the Lease
It is also very important to understand all clauses of the contract/lease so you know what to expect. There might be rules and regulations on certain room decor items like candles or information on bringing guests over. Regardless of what it is, we advise you to go through them thoroughly so that you are well-prepared ahead of your move.
Read this blog on Everything You Need To Know About Student Accommodation Contracts to help you get started.
Budget Planning
Moving into your Lancaster student home does come with different expenses including the things you need to purchase, packaging, transport and more. It is a good idea to budget how much you will need around this time so that you can stay on top of your finances.
Setting Up Your New Lancaster Student Home
Safety First
Before you start anything else, it is best to go around the house and locate the emergency exits, check smoke alarms and familiarise yourself with the garbage disposal policies. These are some of the most important aspects of living in a student home that will ensure that your student home is both safe and clean.
Unpacking
Once you have successfully moved into your student home, the next step is to ensure that you unpack everything as efficiently as you can. You can create a strategy in your mind on how long you will need to unpack each package and in which order you want to go.
Although this might sound unnecessary to some, doing this can prevent you from ending up with a huge mess on move-in day, confused about how you are going to get all of it done. And since this transitionary period is already quite challenging, it is best to tackle simple tasks in an efficient way to avoid stressing yourself out.
Personalising Your Space
One of the most exciting aspects of moving into your student home is to decorate it and make it your own. This doesn’t necessarily have to be something fancy, it just has to be things that make you feel at home. Simple ways to do this are by adding photo frames, lights, posters and more.
Read this blog to find out How To Decorate Your Student Accommodation Without Damaging The Property.
Understanding Bills and Utilities
Setting Up
Depending on the type of student home you are living in, some of them might include the utilities in your rent and some others might not. Be sure to check which one your Lancaster student home falls under so that you can take the next steps accordingly.
Managing Bills
In case your student home doesn’t include bills, then you will have to set up accounts with your provider and create a plan on when and how it is going to be paid. Gather all your housemates before you discuss this.
The bills that you will have to deal with are water, electricity and occasionally gas as well. Students are exempt from paying council tax so that is one less thing you need to worry about. But be sure to submit the council tax exemption letter from your university portal to apply for this exemption.
You will need to set up accounts with the providers for each of your utilities and choose what your mode of payment will be. Either you can choose one person to manage the direct debit each month or you can also choose to make payments monthly depending on your provider. Regardless of which option you go for, be sure to clearly communicate the dates for when the bills need to be paid to avoid any misunderstandings.
Navigating the neighbourhood
Explore The Local Area
Once you have moved into your student home, you can take a walk around the local area to find out where the nearest shops and bus stops are.
Doing this early on can help you get familiarised with the new area, which is really important. You can find out where your classes are going to be and identify how long it might take you to reach there and find cafes and restaurants nearby.
All of this is just to get you used to this new city and help you have control over your schedule and plans.
Settling into your first student home in Lancaster is an exciting step towards a new chapter in your life. While the initial move may feel overwhelming, being well-prepared can make the transition much smoother.
By understanding your new environment, setting up your living space comfortably, and exploring the local area, you’ll quickly feel at home.
Remember to stay organised, communicate openly with your housemates, and take advantage of the student community and resources available.
If you are looking for student houses in Lancaster for when you start university, then you are in the right place. Visit our UK Student Houses website to browse through the different student homes that cater to all your needs.
Read Next: How To Find The Perfect Student Housing in Lancaster