Advice needed

Hello everyone,

Here is my situation:

I'm headed to London on September 5th (starting a MFA program on the 18th!).  I will most likely be looking for a flatshare, as that is what seems to fit my budget.  Since I will fall into the catch 22 of no address = no bank account, how does one go about this without having cheques?  I am wary of handing over large sums of cash to strangers.  Will they run a credit check and do i need references? Also, I've taken out loans to cover the cost of tuition and housing, but the money is being sent to the school...any idea how long it takes UK schools to process these cheques and turn over the extra to me? 

Thank you for your time,
Holly
 

Loads of people flatshare in London. A few sites you may find helpful:

http://www.flatmateclick.co.uk
http://www.moveflat.co.uk
http://uk.easyroommate.com
http://www.gumtree.com/
http://www.loot.com

You can avoid having to pay for a credit check by going with a private landlord. This does involve risk on your part, but some people (like me) prefer dealing with that rather than going with an agency. There seem to be horror stories for both approaches. You have to decide what is right for you.

I have been here a little over 3 months, and am in my second private flatshare. The first was a disaster, and I moved within 6 weeks. The one I am in now is great though. I paid cash for both deposits, and simply got a detailed written receipt as I would have done in the US. Both landlords understood that a credit check was silly since I had just arrived, and my current landlord was happy with a letter from my employer as a reference. If you really want to go with an agency, I think your best bet would be to contact them and see what they would require. I looked at one agency flat when I first arrived and they wanted £90 to run a credit check.

Can't help with the other questions. Good luck with it all!

Also, I've taken out loans to cover the cost of tuition and housing, but the money is being sent to the school...any idea how long it takes UK schools to process these cheques and turn over the extra to me?

From what I can tell, this really depends on the university, but I know that my uni isn't going to process my cheques at all.  They'll hold them for me once they arrive from my lenders, then I pick up the cheques from their office and am responsible for getting them into my bank account and then paying tuition.  Most likely I'll end up sending the cheques back to the States (since they're in US Dollars) so that my parents can deposit the money into my American bank account.

Thank you both so very much!

--Holly

I'd definitely have some cash saved up in case the money doesn't come through quickly!  I also know a lot of people who have flatshares that sometimes come available...if one does come up in the near future, I'll let you know...

Thank you onetiger,  I sincerely appreciate any housing leads!  I don't know anyone in the UK so I am really thankful for your help.  Any thoughts as to what a good stating amount of money to bring would be?

Thanks again,
Holly
 

I had about $2000 plus my parents were on call in case I needed more.  I was lucky that my job helped me set up a bank account, so I could start that sooner rather than later.  I stayed in a B&B for 10 days and then found a place to move into (with one other person).

Thanks again everyone!  I have my Visa and now I'm all set -- I can't wait for September 4th.  Let the flat hunting begin!