Moving out of halls in London: dates, storage gaps, costs and your deposit

The date that binds you is in your accommodation contract — not the end of term, and not the day of your last exam. University halls and private student accommodation are usually let for a fixed licence period, and that period frequently ends within days of the final assessment, regardless of whether you have anywhere to go.

Two things catch students out every year. The first is the time of day: many halls want keys returned by late morning, so "moving out on the 15th" can really mean "everything gone by 10am on the 15th". The second is that overstaying is usually charged as a daily rate, and the rate is rarely generous.

• Find your contract end date and the key-return deadline — both are in your accommodation agreement or your student portal.
• Check whether a short extension exists. Some institutions sell extra nights for resit periods, graduation or visa reasons, but places are limited and go early.
• If your course finishes later than your contract, raise it with the accommodation office as soon as you know, not in the final week.

This is the genuine planning problem. Halls typically end in June; most private student tenancies in London start in September. That leaves several weeks where you have belongings but no address to keep them at.

There are realistically four options, and the right one depends on how much you own and where you are going:

• Take everything home. Cheapest if home is reachable and you have space — but a full room rarely fits in a car, and train luggage limits are real.
• Put it in a storage unit for the summer. Predictable and secure, but you are paying monthly for things you may not want in September.
• Move straight into your next place. Ideal, and worth asking your next landlord whether an early start or early access for belongings is possible — sometimes it is, for a small rent adjustment.
• Cut down hard and take only what matters. Often the cheapest answer overall, and the one students regret least.

If you do use storage, book the unit before you book the move, and measure honestly — most people over-book on space. Movesmith can move your belongings to a storage facility you have booked, or from that facility to your new address in September. We move things; we do not run storage ourselves, so choose the facility that suits you.

A single room's contents is a small move, and it should be priced like one. With Movesmith, single items and small man-and-van loads start from £75, with the price fixed before you book rather than estimated and revised on the day.

What actually moves the number:

• Volume — a few boxes and a suitcase is very different from a room with a desk chair, a mini-fridge and a bike.
• Access at both ends — stairs, whether there is a lift, and how far the van can park from the door.
• Distance — across a borough is cheaper than across London, and much cheaper than a run to another city.
• Timing — the last weekend of the contract period is the busiest moment in the student calendar, and availability tightens.

This is where London differs from everywhere else. In most student cities you park outside and carry things out. In London you may have a single loading bay shared by a building of several hundred students, all leaving in the same 48 hours.

1. Ask the accommodation office how loading works in your building — bay booking, time slots, a service lift, or a designated entrance.
2. Book your slot as early as bookings open. The good times go first, and a missed slot can mean carrying everything a long way.
3. Check parking restrictions on the street outside. Red routes, permit bays and controlled hours all apply on a move-out day like any other.
4. Have everything packed and stacked before the van arrives. Loading time is the part you control, and it is the part that costs you if you have not.
5. Do the room check and return your keys properly — leaving them on the desk usually does not count as returning them.

Almost every student ends the year with more than they arrived with, and the last-minute answer — leaving it in the corridor — creates a charge for you and a problem for the accommodation team.

Work through it in this order, ideally in the fortnight before you leave:

• Sell what has value. Desk chairs, mini-fridges, monitors, kitchen equipment and bikes all sell quickly to next year's students in the weeks before the handover.
• Donate what is usable. Charity shops take clothes, books and kitchenware, and many larger charities will collect furniture free of charge if it is in sellable condition.
• Check whether your university runs a donation scheme. Many London institutions place collection points in halls at the end of the year specifically so usable items are not thrown out.
• Recycle or book a collection for the rest. Your local council runs a bulky-waste collection service for items that cannot go in a normal bin, usually for a small fee.

One thing to be clear about: Movesmith moves belongings — to your new address, to a storage facility or to a charity — but we are not a waste or disposal service and do not take things to the tip. If something needs disposing of rather than moving, your council or a licensed waste carrier is the right route.

Deductions at the end of a hall contract are usually for cleaning, damage beyond fair wear and tear, missing items from the inventory, or belongings left behind. Most of that is avoidable in an afternoon.

• Clean properly, including the oven, fridge and bathroom if they are yours alone — these are the most commonly charged items.
• Photograph the room once it is empty and clean, with the date visible. It costs nothing and settles most disputes.
• Check the inventory you signed at the start and put furniture back where it was.
• Report damage yourself rather than hoping it is missed. Declared damage is usually charged at cost; discovered damage sometimes is not.
• Remove everything, including under the bed and on top of the wardrobe. Items left behind are usually charged as clearance.

Flying home adds a decision most domestic students do not face: what comes with you, what gets shipped, and what stays in the UK until you return.

• Price checked baggage against shipping before deciding. Excess baggage is charged at airline rates and adds up faster than people expect.
• If you are returning next year, storing UK-side is often cheaper than shipping a load home and back again.
• Leave time. If you are shipping, it takes longer than a domestic move and the paperwork is on you.
• Sort the admin before you go — closing or redirecting post, ending contracts and settling any accommodation balance is much harder from another country.

If you are storing things in the UK over the summer, get the belongings moved to the facility while you are still here to check them in. Trying to arrange access remotely once you have flown is the part that goes wrong.

The single most useful thing on that list is the first one. Nearly every stressful student move-out traces back to a date that was assumed rather than checked.