Travel Heart: Looking for a place to rent in London?

I was a renting a place in London for over 3 years. Just like any student who is not British and/or doesn't live in London. Actually I have a couple of mates who live outside of London in Watford and Cambridge who travel miles to school each day. I thought it would be fine to live in student hostel for the entire two years of my studies. However, it was vastly different from the student hostels in Singapore. Perhaps I’m just spoiled. After living one torturous year in a student hostel, I could finally search for a place to rent. Having no experience renting a place at all, my only source was from my university’s website. Eventually, a mate of mine introduced me to Loot. You can get an online copy of Loot but I found that most of the flats online were listed out before I could ring the owners.

Here are some tips that I’ve picked up from moving to 4 places during my 4 years in London.

Get a hardcopy of Loot at your local newsagent. Costs only 1.50 pounds. (Not sure if the price has gone up).
Buy Loot around Friday. New listings seem to appear on Friday’s issue.
For low budgets, look for bedsits or rooms (in flats or houses).
Don’t go for agents. (No comments.)
Places nearer to centre of London are more expensive. Posh areas like Kensington and Bayswater have smaller flats going for more than 10 pounds a week.
Check if you need to place a deposit.
Check with the landlord if there is a minimum renting period (else you don’t get your deposit back if you leave before that).
WM = Washing machine, MW = Microwave, GCH = Good Clean House, F/F = Fully Furnished (all furnishings included)
Central Heating is important. You could end up paying more for electricity.
Check if Council Tax is included. Usually your school can issue you a letter stating that you are exempted from Council Tax.
Check windows for signs of mould. You may be staying there for a year. But remember London is pretty wet. That means mould is a big problem in the winter.
Check for the nearest form of commute to and from your school. Night buses (indicated with N in front of the bus number) are important for your night out.