Renting off campus

Many students choose to rent privately off campus at some point during their studies, often after their first year.

The Renters’ Rights Act has now been passed and will affect new and existing tenancies, including students now looking to sign up for accommodation for 26/27 academic year.  The implementation date has been announced as 1 May 2026 and a ‘roadmap for reforming the private rented sector’ published.

For students renting houses off-campus the main changes are: 

• No more fixed term tenancies – new and existing tenancies will become a ‘rolling’ monthly or weekly tenancy with no set end date.
• Tenants MUST give at least 2 months' notice if they want to end their tenancy and they can do this at any point. But if one housemate gives notice it ends the tenancy for the whole group.
• There will be a new ground for possession relating specifically to students to enable landlords to end a tenancy at the end of the academic year. In practice this will make little difference as most students will wish to move on at the end of the academic year anyway.
• Landlords will not be able to ask for more than 1 month's rent in advance.
• Landlords/letting agents must publish an asking rent and cannot solicit or accept offers exceeding this amount.

You can find further information about the different stages and aspects of renting off campus by having a look at the webpages linked in the 'Further Information' section.

Please always use the webpages as a starting point if you have any questions. 

If you want more advice on living off campus, you can contact the Student Advice and Support Service.

For on-campus queries you can contact the Student Accommodation Centre.

Last Updated: 1st December 2025