dwell Hotwells House

Tenancy deposit

After students have signed their AST (contract), they will be asked to pay a tenancy deposit. The total tenancy deposit to pay for their room is £200, except for those students accepting a room at Castle Gate Haus where they are required to pay a £300 deposit and for 121 Princess Street where the deposit is £500. Please note no deposit is required for contract lengths less than 40 weeks at Garth Heads.

Rent payment

We offer two rent method options:

Option 1 – Full Payment; Pay in full by the 1st of August 2021 and get money off total rent! 2% discount – Manchester, Liverpool, Bristol and Nottingham, and 5% discount- Newcastle.

Option 2 – Pay in 3 different Instalments; September, January, and April – students can view the exact payment dates in their contract (this may be the best payment option for those looking to pay their rent using their student loan). Please note that to apply to pay by installments, students must provide a UK based guarantor who is aged 21 or over and in full time employment. The guarantor will also need to annually earn at least 3 times students' total rent amount, or be a homeowner.

Students can pay their tenancy deposit and rent by

* logging to their portal account and then pay online, or

* pay via bank transfer 

Updates to Policy

• Students who are not allowed to enter UK will be granted a deferment of their contract start date until when the travel ban are lifted, or when they check in to the property, whichever occurs earlier. Rent will not be charged during the deferred period. The tenancy end date remains the same.

• Should there be a delay to the start date of universities, or for the period where the universities are closed and offering online courses, students will be granted a deferment of their contract start date until when the new date of course starts, or when they check in to the property, whichever occurs earlier. 

• Rent will not be charged during the deferred period. Any rent made for period prior to the new start date will be credited to any future rent payments or partially refunded if you have paid in full. The tenancy end date remains the same.

International Students

If you are coming to study from outside of the UK and you require a VISA for this study you are able to
apply for a tenancy release as long as your contract has not yet started if your VISA application is
denied. If you are able to provide one of the following there will be no penalty for your cancellation;

• Confirmation of your VISA rejection

• Confirmation of failure to gain place within University
If you are unfortunate to be diagnosed with COVID-19 and your tenancy has not yet started we would
also consider a release in this circumstance provided you are able to share one of the following
documents;

• Medical certificate confirming you have been infected with COVID-19 and are therefore
unable to come to the UK

• A letter from your University confirming you are not able to join the course due to illness

• If you are staying with us from January 2021, you would need to email us all of the relevant details/evidence outlined below within 5 days before your contract start date.

Cancellation Policy

Is there a FREE cancellation period if I’m still undecided on what to do?

Yes! If you have booked a 21/22 academic year room with us here at dwell, you can cancel your 21/22 contract up to and including the 31st May 2021 without being tied into the contract or being responsible for any rent fees. This is not applicable to any students that have deferred their 20/21 contract to the 21/22 year.

To inform us that you wish to cancel, you must email us at: [email protected]  by midnight 31st May 2021. The Sales Team would then check you’re within the stated period, and if you are they’d let you know this and would send you a cancellation request form which you must print out, sign by hand and return back to the above email address.

If you are cancelling after 31st May 2021, then the below Cancellation Policy applies.

If you are canceling after 11th January 2021 - 

What if I sign/signed my contract on or before the 31st July 2021?

Up to and including the 31st July 2021, you can sign your contract but then request to cancel within 3 days of signing your contract. This is known as your 3 days cooling-off period (as once you sign the contract and surpass this 3 day period, you’re tied into the contract). To inform us that you wish to cancel, you must email us at [email protected] within your 3 days cooling-off period. The Sales Team would then check you’re within your 3 day cooling-off period, and if you are they’d let you know this and would send you a cancellation request form which you must print out, sign by hand, and return back to the above email address.

If however you signed your contract on or before 31st July, but you request to cancel outside of your 3 days cooling-off period, then you will be tied into the contract until a suitable replacement tenant is found and clause 9.3 in your contract is met. You would however still need to inform us that you wish to cancel, so please email us at [email protected] The Sales Team would send you a cancellation request form which you must print out, sign by hand, and return to the above email address.

What if I sign/signed my contract on or after 1st August 2021?

If you sign your contract on or after 1st August 2021, you will be immediately tied into the contract as we do not offer a cooling-off period on or after this date. You will be unable to cancel your booking unless a suitable replacement student is found and clause 9.3 in your contract is met.

When will I be released from the contract?

You will only be released from your contract if one of the below options are met (and you’re eligible for that option):

• If you email us within your 3 days cooling-off period to inform that you wish to cancel, and you have provided your signed cancellation request form which has been accepted by us
• If a suitable replacement tenant is found and clause 9.3 in your contract is met
• If you sign a new contract with us at dwell Students and you sign the new contract (and surpass the 3 days cooling-off  period, if applicable)

If a suitable replacement tenant is found for your room (and clause 9.3 in your contract is met) before your contract start date, we will release you from your contract once the new tenant has signed their contract (and surpassed the 3day cooling off period, if applicable).

However, if a suitable replacement tenant is found for your room (and clause 9.3 in your contract is met) after your contract start date, we will release you from your contract from the date that the new tenant’s contract starts. This means that you’d be liable for the room’s rent up to the date that the new tenant’s contract starts.

To confirm, once a suitable replacement tenant has been found to take over your contract, there are a number of actions to be completed before we can release you from your contract. This is clause 9.3 as stated in your contract, but we’ve also included them below:

• a replacement tenant has been found who has been approved by us as a suitable tenant
• you have paid any administration fees owed to us for transferring your tenancy along with any rent owed on the room up to the end of your tenancy period
• paid any reasonable charges that are ascertained during an inspection of the flat and room at the end of your tenancy period
• the new tenant has paid any deposit and any rent owing on the room
• the new tenant has signed a tenancy agreement with us for a period that is equal to the rest of your fixed term
• the new tenant has provided all documents required, including guarantor information if applicable

Failure of a new tenant signing a tenancy agreement for the room and fulfilling all criteria will mean you are liable for all rent on the room until the end date set out in the principals of your contract.

Special Circumstances (outside the scope of the above 3 points):

• 1st Year Guarantee:
  If you are going into your 1st year at university, and you, unfortunately, do not achieve the required grades for your course/university, you will be released from your contract providing we receive a cancellation request email and results evidence within 48 hours of your results being published. Your results supporting evidence can be from UCAS or your university showing your name and the results outcome. Please send your email (including the cancellation request and your results supporting evidence) to [email protected] We’d also need you to complete a cancellation request form which we’d send across to you once you send us your cancellation request email.  If we were able to release you from the contract due to this criteria being met, any deposit or rent payments already made will be refunded in full
• International Students:
  If you are coming to study from outside of the UK, and you require a VISA for this study but your VISA application is unfortunately denied, then you are able to cancel your contract as long as your contract has not yet started. You will also need to provide one of the following as supporting evidence, and there will be no penalty for your cancellation:  1)  Confirmation of your VISA rejection  or   2)  Confirmation of failure to gain University place

Cancellations during the tenancy period:

We are unable to cancel any contract after its start date unless a replacement tenant is found (and clause 9.3 in your contract is met) as detailed above. You’d be liable for the room’s rent up to the date that the new tenant’s contract starts. All cancellation requests should be submitted to your site team using our cancellation request form, which you can request from your site team.

Q. Due to Travel Ban from UK or my home country, can I defer to check in for the academic
     year of 2020/21?
 
Yes. Students who are not allowed to enter UK will be granted a deferment of their contract start date until when the travel ban are lifted, or when they check in to dwell UK property, whichever occurs earlier. Rent will not be charged during the deferred period. The tenancy end date remains the same.

Q. What if I do not receive a VISA or offer from my chosen institution?

 There will be no penalty for cancellation if a student fails to obtain a Visa or University admission. One of following supporting document should be provided within 7 days of its issuance as long as your contract has not yet started.
• Confirmation of your VISA rejection
• Confirmation of failure to gain place within University

Q. What if the delay of processing visa?

 In the event there is a delay in visa approval (due to closures of embassies etc.), all requests will be handled on a case by case basis.

Q. Can I defer to check in if University has decided to delay the commencement or move to
remote teaching and learning for 2020/21?

 Should there be a delay to the start date of universities, or for the period where the universities are closed and offering online courses, students will be granted a deferment of their contract start date until when the new date of course starts, or when they check in to dwell UK property, whichever occurs earlier. Rent will not be charged during the deferred period. Any rent made for period prior to the new start date will be credited to any future rent payments or partially refunded if you have paid in full. The tenancy end date remains the same.

Q. Can I live with my friends?

Yes, Just state your friend’s names on your application, with them doing the same too. You can also say if you have a preferred gender or year of study for your flatmates. We’ll try our best to meet your preferences but it’s not always guaranteed and is subject to availability.

Q. What is a guarantor? Do I need one?

If you’re paying ahead for the full year, you don’t have to provide a UK guarantor.

However, if you wish to pay your rent in instalments, you will need a UK-based guarantor who is working full-time. Your guarantor must agree to pay the rent should you default on your payment. Providing a guarantor is common practice in the UK and provides us with the security and knowledge that the rent will be paid in full and on time.

If you cannot provide a qualified UK guarantor, you can contact Housing Hand to provide you with the Guarantor Service. Housing Hand specializes in dealing with International Students who cannot provide a Guarantor in the UK.  

Q. What are repairs and maintenance policy?

This is a commitment that we’ll always do our best to ensure that your stay with us is safe and comfortable. When things break down, need replacing, or even servicing, we’ll attend to it as quickly as possible. Each of our properties has on-site maintenance support to help us achieve that. 

Q. How do I inform if something breaks down? 

Inform on the online student portal. The portal keeps a log of your report and updates you on the status of the repair. If that is not convenient, let a member of our team know.

Q. How long it will take to do the repairs?

Priority One “Emergency Repairs” are attended within a maximum of 24 hours of a report. These would be any repairs required to avoid a danger to health, a risk to the safety of residents or serious damage to buildings or resident’s belongings, such as:

• Breaches of security to external doors or windows
• Unsafe electrical fittings or gas leak
• Heating and/or loss of hot water
• Plumbing leaks
• Faulty kitchen appliances, such as a broken oven
• A fault with the fire system, faulty detector or fire panel

Priority Two “Urgent Repairs” are attended within five working days of a report. These would be any repairs which materially affect the comfort or convenience of the residents such as:

• Blocked drains, sinks or toilet
• Minor electrical fault, such as a light out in a hallway
• Faulty extractor fan
• Dripping/leaking taps or shower units
• Shower base re-seal

Priority Three “Non-urgent Repairs” are attended within 28 days of a report. These would be any repairs not falling within the above categories, such as:

• Replacement chair or mattress
• Minor plumbing repairs
• Faulty TV aerial
• Repairs to kitchen fittings
• Tiling repairs
• Kitchen worktop repair