why rent from place homes ?  

Renting from us uniquely gives tenants the benefits associated with renting through a large corporate agent (access to quality properties, 24 hour telephone + email back up 365 days a year, resources  and impartiality) with none of the negatives (high fees, complex administration, delays, inflexibility and lack of office personnel continuity).  For students  we aim to provide a  comparable  level of service and standard of accommodation to that available through  the bulk private housing schemes offered  by Unite, Nido and Liberty  but on competitive  terms and  with none of the  corporate negatives and institutional rules  which necessarily apply to these large schemes.  

Despite growing in size and scope over the last ten years to now  include social housing through our housing association partners and corporate letting to banks and embassy clients, our student and graduate housing remains separately managed  and well resourced,  and  a key element  to  our  continuing success. 

Crucially, we  understand that in the  competitive student housing  market, this success  depends  on  the complete satisfaction of student and graduate tenants  which can only be maintained  if we are properly regulated,  accessible and approachable at senior management and decision making  level, invest to maintain and improve properties  to meet changing demands and  regulations,  and always provide a high standard of personal and professional service. 

Many student and graduate tenants renew their tenancies more than once (recently for up to six years, although at different sites) through university and into graduation and their first job. This endorsement in itself says more than we possibly can. For our Business Statement, click here. For our Key Benefits Statement, click here.  For our Compliance Statement, click here. A more general summary follows below.    

Our service is better because:   

• All tenants renting from us benefit from in house property management and document production by professionally qualified staff 
• Student tenants have their own separate  pass-worded on line “self management” resources  area where they (and their parents) can access all instruction manuals, gas safety certificates, television licence   and other relevant information about their property at any time     
• All tenants can also contact us 24 hours a day by e-mail, voicemail and sms text, facilitating communication out of normal office hours, but with confidence that their enquiry will be dealt with. We now operate the most technically advanced communications platforms, with VOIP technology backed up by traditional telecoms, and supported by externally monitored voicemail and sms text management  
• Although tenants tell us that they find our automated systems reliable and effective, it is still always possible to speak to someone with the authority to make an on the spot decision about anything which is important, so if tenants need an answer urgently, they get one !
• All tenants are issued with a direct dial number for a dedicated named contact who will manage their property throughout  the course of  their tenancy and this should be the only person whom tenants need to contact and if they are  not available calls will be automatically transferred to our main London reception       
• For when things go wrong we provide 24 hour managed emergency contact which tenants can access directly through our 020 automated switchboard 365 days a year, with guaranteed response targets. If you have an emergency, you will always be able to speak to someone 
• To assist those tenants with specific needs under the Disability Discrimination Act 2005, at least one sleeping room in each house has fitted carpet, and at least one sleeping room in each house is accessible without stairs. We will make reasonable adjustments for tenants where physical conditions permit. Some properties have a downstairs WC and downstairs shower room and we can assist  tenants in identifying these properties when booking accommodation       
• We follow the Commission For Racial Equality's code of practice on housing, so we will never discriminate on grounds of race, ethnic background, colour or nationality. Equally, we do not discriminate on grounds of sexual orientation           
• We care about your safety. Every property has a fire blanket + fire extinguisher and there are smoke alarms to every room. A fire risk assessment is carried out on all tenancy changeovers  to assess what are  acceptable fire safety measures  in accordance with the latest LACORS (Local Authority Coordinators  of Regulatory Services) guidance for rented property  
• All  properties feature intruder alarms and  mains wired carbon monoxide alarm protection (with digital display for total peace of mind)
• At every property, the exterior windows are fitted with locking handles. Where double glazing is not fitted (i.e. original sash windows) or on perceived vulnerable windows, metal security grills are also fitted as an additional precaution. All exterior doors have a minimum 5 lever security lock plus at least one additional locking device
• All properties  feature flat screen television to lounge and high speed  50mb Category 6 wired (and wireless N) internet with two RJ45 internet sockets in every room
• All properties feature private washbasin facilities either en-suite (or allocated to) all main sleeping rooms 
• All properties feature stripped wooden floor boards or laminate wooden floors, wooden venetian blinds, modern kitchens and  bathrooms, modern and efficient gas central heating systems with condensing boilers and constant hot water systems
• Student Solutions  properties now  provide an even higher level of facilities with  up to three additional separate shower rooms (each with independent hot water provision)  upgraded ovens, fridge freezers and laundry facilities, and every  bedroom with own wall mounted flat screen television         
• All properties  are offered on the legendary "all bills inclusive"  package  with  completely unlimited and unmonitored  use of electric, gas, water, heating, freeview tv and minimum 50mb Category 6 wired (and wireless N) internet plus free landline telephone  with 020 number,  with no further budgeting worries and no paperwork to complete, providing a "turnkey" move in 

Our service is different because:  

• We don’t let houses for any other landlords, so we have complete control over standards      
• Our houses are regularly inspected independently by Colleys Surveyors and an independent record of the state and condition is retained. Any issues relevant to health and safety (as required under the HHSRS- Housing Health Safety Rating System) are immediately attended to 
• We are recognised as a commercial “essential service provider” by the London Borough of Haringey
• We carry property owners public liability insurance per house of  £5 Million 
• We are members of the National Landlords Association
• We are Accredited under the London Landlord Accreditation Scheme
• We are registered with the Information Commissioner  under the Data Protection Act 
• We are licensed by the Office of Fair Trading under the Consumer Credit Act. We are also registered with Experian, the main external UK credit  reference agency
• The Place Group UK separate in house legal and compliance department is registered with Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) and acts exclusively for Place Group UK together with any holding, associated or subsidiary businesses (and any businesses in which Place Group UK may by way of joint venture have an interest) and for the managers of those businesses
• We have a professional and independent complaints handling procedure
• All existing  and prospective tenants benefit from  the fact that  we are a member of the Surveyors Ombudsman Service which is a government approved  dispute resolution scheme operated on behalf of the Royal Institution of  Chartered Surveyors (RICS)  and which may be able to help with any complaints if we are unable to. The Surveyors Ombudsman Service is approved by the Office of Fair Trading, is entirely independent, and provides a free service investigating complaints fairly by listening to both sides of the story and looking at the facts
• Existing tenants additionally benefit from the fact that we are also a registered housing provider  and a member of the separate Housing Ombudsman Service which is free to tenants, independent and impartial, and can deal with complaints and disputes affecting a wide range of property issues  
• We comply with the Landlord Codes Of Conduct issued by  the main London Universities such as the University of London, City University, Westminster University  and London Metropolitan University
• Students and their guarantors consistently tell us that  we provide a better service (as well as better accommodation)  than other landlords and that our management style is open fair and honest
• We have a policy of contributing our time to the community in which we own houses. We carry out free maintenance for vulnerable neighbours. We contribute to local mentoring and youth education and rehabilitation projects, support homeless charities and give free housing advice to vulnerable people, giving a vital first step to rehabilitation for the  vulnerable people such organisations support     
• Whilst we are often contacted by  media companies  for our advice and co-operation  when making programmes about housing and property, we maintain a policy of  complete confidentiality and discretion at all times