Furnished flat for long-term stay?

Hi!  I'm moving with my husband and daughter to Edinburgh early this fall and we're looking around for a place to live.  We're having trouble figuring out whether we should go with a furnished or an unfurnished place.  So far in our online searches, it seems that most places for rent are furnished and this does sound easier as we try to get acclimated to the city.  We figure that we can always decide to move to an unfurnished place later on.  However my husband's new employers will be paying to move our possessions over there from the U.S. and if we moved to a furnished place, we would just sell all of our furniture here.  Then we have the problem of having to completely start from scratch buyign new furniture if we moved into an unfurnished place later on!  We're wondering if it might be a better idea to move into an unfurnished place right from the start and move our old furniture out with us.  Also we wonder what the condition of the furniture in a furnished place is.  Is it a lot of cheap or old furniture?  We're planning to live in the area indefinitely and a furnished place sounds so temporary to me!

Thanks!
Jessica

Hi Jessica! 

I think it all depends on how long you're planning on being in the UK.  If it's longer than a year or two, I'd suggest you try the furnished flat idea and either sell or store all your US things.

My husband and I just moved to the Edinburgh area a few weeks ago, and we moved into a very nicely furnished home.  Before moving here, we lived in London, again in a furnished flat.  In my experience, furnished places are a godsend when you first move and I would highly recommend going down that route.  For one thing it makes things easier, and for another, moving all your stuff over here is sometimes a waste of time.  Beds and couches are different sizes here and I've heard horror stories of having to chop up antique furniture just to get it up some 19th century stairwell.  And anything electrical is a complete waste of time.  You'll be surprised how little of your things you'll need or want here.

The place we moved into is about 20 miles outside of Edinburgh (I think!) and it has *everything* you could want or need already in it, and it is all very nice, high quality stuff.  There are pictures on the walls, gardening tools in the garage, leather sofas, nick-nacks all over, and a fully stocked kitchen.  This place has a lot more funishings in it than our last place in London, but that's because it is specifically intended for people being moved over by their company.  They don't expect people to rent this place more than six months or so before moving into their own place.  It's been great for us because we havent had to unpack all that much.  Half of our boxes are still taped up in the garage because we just don't need them.  We're planning on buying a home soon.   

I'd suggest you ask your husband's employer if they'll help you store your things, even for a little while until you can think about what you want to do with it all. 

Edinburgh is full of exec's moving in and out, so you shouldn't have a problem finding a furnished place up to your standards.

Good luck in your move!

Best of luck to you in your move & welcome to the board! 

DH moved into a furnished flat about two years before we got married and I was a bit worried about it.  In my mind, I saw a damp, dingy flat with musty furniture from the 70s!  I couldn't have been more wrong though -- he moved into a brand new flat with gorgeous brand new furnishings.  Every single thing was provided -- down to tea bags!  We lived there quite happily for about six months before we made the move to Newcastle for his job.  There were two bedrooms (and the second wasn't a box room!), a nice sized kitchen, nice bath w/ shower and tub, and a large sitting room and I think the rent was £495/mo.  The service fee was something like £40/year.

My flat is like what Lola described.  Brand new everything... granted, it's from Ikea but it was clean and new.  I had to buy electronics except for my toaster, kettle and hoover.  I'm not sure how much of my US furniture would fit or if it would've made it up the stairs. 

Thanks for the advice.  We weren't planning to bring any of our electronics, but have some smaller pieces of furniture and a futon that we'd want to bring.  We don't have couches, dining tables, or beds, so don't have large pieces of furniture to worry about.  Knowing that we will have to replace our electronics, we are tending to lean towards a furnished place.  Do they include things like T.V.s and telephone, etc.?

Will the landlord take some furniture out of a furnished place if you ask?  One of the bedrooms we would want to be a nursery for our daughter. We are planning to bring our own nursery furniture.  Would the landlord move the bed, etc. out of one of the bedrooms without hassle?

\ There were two bedrooms (and the second wasn't a box room!), \

I'm sorry, what is a "box room"?   

It's up to the landlord if he/she takes furniture out.  Some will, some won't, depending if they have a place to store it.  A lot of buy-to-let flats have owners who do not live locally. 

Don't forget you have to have a license to use the TV!  It's about £8-£10/month for a colour TV.  It's illegal to run one w/o it, and they have these vans that come patrolling around to catch people out.

A box room is basically a large, walk-in cupboard.  It usually doesn't have windows to the outside, hence it's not considered a 'bedroom', but it can be big enough for a single (twin) bed to fit in it.

Also, budget for council tax!  It's rare to find a place that includes council tax - and if it does you can bet the rent will reflect that.  Water, sewage and rubbish collection will be added to your total council tax payment.  We pay £131/month for a Band C 2 bed flat in Edinburgh.  Here are the bands (warning:  the costs shown don't include water, sewage and rubbish).  Might be a good idea to ask which band your flat is in.  http://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/CEC/Corporate_Services/Corporate_Communications/Council_Tax_Leaflet/2005/Council_Tax2005_v1.html

If you are looking to move to Edinburgh in late July or August I very strongly suggest you start looking for accommodation immediately!  1) The Festival & Fringe puts accommodation at a premium during this time, with landlords able to ask up to £800/week for flats walking distance to town centre (we have a lecturer in our department who is spending the summer in Berlin  and paying the mortgage on her flat for the entire 3 months by letting her flat only in August).  2) b/c student housing is very, very limited, about 90% of all University of Edinburgh students rent privately and arrive at the end of August. 

If you are looking to move to Edinburgh in late July or August I very strongly suggest you start looking for accommodation immediately! 1) The Festival & Fringe puts accommodation at a premium during this time, with landlords able to ask up to £800/week for flats walking distance to town centre (we have a lecturer in our department who is spending the summer in Berlin and paying the mortgage on her flat for the entire 3 months by letting her flat only in August). 2) b/c student housing is very, very limited, about 90% of all University of Edinburgh students rent privately and arrive at the end of August.

We are thinking of moving in late August/early September because of the Festival, although this will be dependant on the housing that we find.  We have (tentative) plans to fly out there the week of June 20th to secure a flat. 

What is considered to be "student housing", expat?  Neither of us are students and we would really prefer not to live in a student-populated neighborhood.  Will it be so difficult to find housing that is not geared towards students?

We are thinking of moving in late August/early September because of the Festival, although this will be dependant on the housing that we find.  We have (tentative) plans to fly out there the week of June 20th to secure a flat. 

What is considered to be "student housing", expat?  Neither of us are students and we would really prefer not to live in a student-populated neighborhood.  Will it be so difficult to find housing that is not geared towards students?

Marchmont, The Meadows, Sciennes, Lauriston, the Pleasance and some parts of Newington have very large student populations.  As well as the areas around Clerk (pronounced 'Clark') Street, the top of Leith Walk/Elm Row and Easter Road.  These areas are all very near (walking distance to) town centre. 

Edinburgh has an affluent student population, so rents in these areas can be quite steep.

Edinburgh is very much a 'tenement' city, with about 65% of its housing stock in the form of flats.  Houses are mostly semi-detached (attached to one neighbour) or 'terrace' (a row).  There are very, very few 'bungalows' (ranch style houses) in town. 

Lothian (pronounced with a long 'o') buses are fairly efficient coming into town, and so areas on a Lothian bus line are all good options.  A bus pass costs about £31/month.  Do be aware, however, that the ol' 'you don't need a car in Edinburgh' doesn't really ring true unless you live in town centre, especially if you have a child.  Many buses are older style and do not accommodate a buggy, so you have to fold it down with one hand whilst minding the child and your shopping with the other.  And the city has many, many stairs and is quite hilly.

We live fairly close to town - about two miles - in an area called Leith Links.  And a car has been invaluable for bargain-hunting - especially with a nearly two-year-old daughter and another baby on the way.  But we pay for the priviledge - our rent, council tax and electricity total £706/month for a two-bed flat, and flats this size around here sell for £180,000+.  You see them listed as 'offers over'.  It's a blind bidding process, and you generally bid 25-50% over the 'offers over' price and see how you get on. 

Beware flats or homes with NO central heat (VERY common as most of the stock is Victorian or older) and/or NO double-glazed windows!  These can be a trap, especially if you see them in summer.  Many have very high ceilings and look cool and inviting in summer.  They will be absolutely BALTIC in winter and your electricity bill will be astronomical as you'll have to use portable electric heaters.  Pay attention to the home's aspect - Edinburgh is often very cold, in a wet sort of way, and north-facing windows can jack your heating bills. 

It is a good idea to come over in June and see what you find.  As soon as the Festival ends, the students start arriving as their semester begins in mid-September. 

If you decide to move out of town and you have no car, beware a long commute if you're not on a train line!  It can take folks living outside town who must rely on non-Lothian buses to get to work up to an hour and a half each way for a journey of 15 or 20 miles.  So, yes, whilst your rent may be cheaper, you might make up for it in time and commuting costs. 

B/c petrol is not cheap here and cars cost more to run - in road tax and MOT - commuting costs are a real factor. 

Hello, my family and I are moving to Croydon London in Jan 06 around the Thornton Heath area and are wanting to know a little about the area and what types of accomodations are available such as flats, houses ect.  What do you guys suggest Flat or House?  It will be me, my husband and our son who will be 6 by the time we move.  And also about the different schools, he will be in Kindergarten when school starts back.  ANy help will be appreciated.

Sheila