I'm going to need to find a room in Brighton

So I'm going to be moving to the UK at the end of April/early May. I'm going to need a place to stay hopefully in or close to Brighton. I've checked out this one site spareroom.co.uk and there are a bunch of good places there but it seems like the majority of them either want girls or someone who is older than me (22). One big issue I have is that I won't be able to rent a flat on my own, as I understand that I'll require a guaranteer to sign my lease for me, and the only people I know who even MIGHT do it are my girlfriends parents, although for obvious reasons I really really really don't want to ask them to be financially responsible for me.

You watmmers have any suggestions as to some good sites I could try?

Or as an alternative, are any of you currently living in brighton and looking for a roommate? I know it's probably a long shot but I'd much prefer to live with watmmers over other random strangers.

Any other general advice for settling in there would be appreciated as well. This has been a pretty big undertaking so far but the hardest part is still ahead of me.

  On 3/23/2011 at 11:49 PM, thehauntingsoul said:

Any other general advice for settling in there would be appreciated as well.

if you're ever in a pub, never say the word "soccer"

lol no advice from me since i moved in the opposite direction lol, and i have never been to Brighton anyway innit. good luck though. what ye moving over for? got a visa or some shit?

I'm going on what's called the Youth Mobility Scheme. No work visa required, you basically just show up with enough money to support yourself until you get a job. As for why I'm going, I guess the big two reasons would be the music scene and my gf. On top of that I've always been a huge anglophile and I think it would tickle me pink to be surrounded by British people all the time.

Cool man, congratulations!! Been living in Brighton for a few years now, it's pretty good all round.

Good places to search, maybe gumtree. It's a bit like craigslist I suppose, big classified ads and so on... There's always room postings up there. You might also give camelot properties a look too. They have quite a few properties in Brighton and it's always super cheep. also a good chance of ending up in a place with a lot of creative/interesting people. sometimes a long waiting list but worth checking out.

If I think of anything else I'll be sure to put it here, I'll ask around too and see if anyone has a spare room.

best of luck man!

You might not need to move there. Who knows what might happen before this day...

Tape your bumhole shut

  On 3/24/2011 at 1:45 AM, chassis said:

Tape your bumhole shut

I went a step further and had it sewn shut. Can't take any chances.

beware of the chavs, they are like gonorrhea

I've used gumtree to find a spare room before and it worked out perfectly. I don't suppose you'll have a chance to visit before you want to move in though - are you going to want to move in as soon as you land? That is always going to be tricky so I would avoid long commitments as much as possible until you've had a look and met the people etc. Maybe contact a B&B and ask about a reduced rate to stay for a couple of weeks while you find a room.

say 'tickle me pink' as much as possible.

  On 3/24/2011 at 12:08 PM, Coalbucket PI said:

I've used gumtree to find a spare room before and it worked out perfectly. I don't suppose you'll have a chance to visit before you want to move in though - are you going to want to move in as soon as you land? That is always going to be tricky so I would avoid long commitments as much as possible until you've had a look and met the people etc. Maybe contact a B&B and ask about a reduced rate to stay for a couple of weeks while you find a room.

i was going to say - Gumtree's a good resource for finding a room in London, it'll probably do you well in Brighton too.

i'm planning on taking a trip down to the seaside myself when the weather's a little better, so maybe we can go for a drink!

Quite often house shares dont require a guarantor, just getting on with the tennants and a deposit is often enoght. Its usually just estate agents making their job seem relevant, so avoid them. So use Gumtree or something like it, moveflat.com is good for London but I dont know the Brighton equivalent.

If you find yourself in the situation where you need a sofa to crash on for a few days while you sort yourself out, should be able to help you out, help you find your barings a little bit etc. Would have to check with my housemates but doubt it'll be an issue.

You can even try searching the Friday ads website, again another classifieds thats sorted by areas, normally some room adverts in there.

There's quite a lot of Brighton watmmers i think, should arrange some type of meet up!

  On 3/24/2011 at 2:04 PM, TechDiff said:

If you find yourself in the situation where you need a sofa to crash on for a few days while you sort yourself out, should be able to help you out, help you find your barings a little bit etc. Would have to check with my housemates but doubt it'll be an issue.

 

You can even try searching the Friday ads website, again another classifieds thats sorted by areas, normally some room adverts in there.

 

There's quite a lot of Brighton watmmers i think, should arrange some type of meet up!

Definitely a Brighton meetup when I get down there. Also I appreciate the offer man, I have a few other options that I'd probably try first just to avoid being a hassle but it's nice to know the option is available if I'm not going to be able to stay at my gf's place while I find a room because I was thinking I'd probably have to hostel it if so.

  On 3/24/2011 at 1:45 AM, Enter a new display name said:

You might not need to move there. Who knows what might happen before this day...

What's that supposed to mean?

Olivier is a serial killer

Oh another idea is students, trawl through these or post something yourself and you'll find something, might be able to dip in to the end of someones contract so you would only be pinned down for the summer until you can scope out something better.

http://www.sussex.ac.uk/students/newsandevents/smallads/?page=1

http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/forumdisplay.php?f=112

  On 3/24/2011 at 3:59 PM, Coalbucket PI said:

Oh another idea is students, trawl through these or post something yourself and you'll find something, might be able to dip in to the end of someones contract so you would only be pinned down for the summer until you can scope out something better.

 

 

http://www.sussex.ac.uk/students/newsandevents/smallads/?page=1

http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/forumdisplay.php?f=112

Only problem with that is Council Tax. Full time students are exempt, which would leave him picking up the bill on his own.

One possibility is lodging rather than renting. There isn't the same legal framework as there is with a tenancy agreement, and either the lodger or landlord just have to give 'reasonable notice' which is usually inferred to mean 1 month, but can be less. Deposits are usually less, and rent should be less as there's a tax break on lodging income but not on rental income, as well as having next to none of the legal protection of a tenancy. But it is potentially more flexible and cheaper. They'll be listed on spareroom and gumtree as well. Spareroom is usually ok, but just be careful of scammers on gumtree.

The last time we advertised for a housmate in London we had approx. 75 queries within the first 12 hours. Brighton won't be dissimilar. That's not to discourage you as about 80% were idiots and/or completely inappropriate ("yeah thanks for ringing at 11.30 at night, but no, you will be not moving in with your girlfriend and family from Africa into our small single room"). It pays to be together and sorted, and that includes being able to pay deposits and 1st month rent straight away, as well as just being obviously not mental. Other posters are right, guarantors are usually only needed through agencies, but it's likely to be asked for if you're coming from another country and not currently in work, which is a problem as it's a renters market and most will be able to pick and choose.

good point about council tax, you do get 25% off if you are the only one paying it though. if you just move in to cover a housemate who has dropped out you could easily forget to mention it to the council

  On 3/24/2011 at 4:40 PM, Coalbucket PI said:

if you just move in to cover a housemate who has dropped out you could easily forget to mention it to the council

i've done this before, in a situation where it was just me and 5 students in a house. it's not big and it's not clever, but i got away with it. i'm all legit now.

im planning on signing up to 185 pound college courses at the start of the year for pretty much the rest of my life, where i stay in the west end of the glasgow the council tax works out between 1500-2000 quid a year, sign up to college, hand in exemption form, dont go to college, repeat.

I hope I can get a job selling phones, because the commission would really help with the bills, and on top of that it is my current field of expertise.