Living in Canterbury

When looking for private rented housing in Canterbury, we recommend you research carefully any agents, individuals and companies advertising property for rent.

There is private purpose-built student accommodation available in Canterbury. Our two preferred suppliers are:

Living in Medway

If you want to live in a local house, flat or lodgings while you study at Medway, we can point you in the right direction.

Search StudentTenant to find properties, set up viewings with landlords and securely book.
Contact Unite Students directly to see if they have any rooms available in other flats

Private renting tips and advice

Coming to University may be your first experience of living away from home, and/or living in private rented housing. This might be exciting and fun, but perhaps also daunting or complicated, and there are many things you need to consider.

Read the student friendly guide, Looking, Living, Leaving, to find out about renting as a student.

The following links may be of use for private rented housing:

Deposit guarantor scheme

We have partnered with Housing Hand, a specialist student guarantor service. The scheme is designed so it acts as your guarantor and is ideal if you don't have someone who qualifies to do so.

Advice for students with families

Home and international students with young dependants are strongly recommended to first arrive in Canterbury or Medway on their own to find suitable accommodation, before bringing their family to the area/ UK to join them. Please bear in mind that this can be difficult to arrange and can often take weeks rather than days to organise. We strongly encourage you to view all private accommodation before committing to a property.

Again, we strongly recommend that students with families come to the UK first to organise accommodation before bringing their family over. Please do not organise single University accommodation if you are planning to bring your family to the UK during that year as you will be tied into your accommodation contract for the full period.

It's important to view property if possible before signing any private accommodation contract and you should check your contract carefully before signing it. This is particularly important for international students who may not be aware of their rights as tenants in the UK. Students who leave private accommodation early will find themselves responsible for full payment, until the end of their contract. It is important that you know what you are signing up for and that the housing you have found is appropriate for your family's situation.

You will need to consider an appropriate budget for the private sector. Typical prices start from monthly rent cost as shown below, and can rise considerably based on the area and accommodation you need.

Location	2 bed	3 bed
Canterbury	£1,200	£1,400
Medway	£1,000	£1,100

Other costs may have to be paid on top, such as heating, electricity, internet and water costs. If you have a partner living with you who is not a student you may also have to pay council tax.

Some properties are unfurnished. You may find cheaper used furniture at these community furniture stores: Abacus Furniture or Necessary Furniture.

Details of family accommodation in the Canterbury and the Medway area can be found through independent private sector letting agents, Rightmove and Zoopla.

For advice on finding private accommodation, refer to:

Deciding where to live may be affected by a range of factors including the proximity to schools and other family-focused services.

University recommendations

The University has not visited, inspected or approved the accommodation and services offered by local landlords and letting agents advertising on these sites or other external providers. Prospective tenants should therefore expect variations in the suitability and possibly the standards of the housing offered.

The University does not accept any liability or responsibility for the quality of the accommodation offered or the services provided by these landlords or agents or the content of any external websites in this information.

Private sector accommodation