University of Edinburgh- Housing costs, logistics, etc

[peter.rowe]

Hi all,

I have just been accepted to the University of Edinburgh (MSc- Environment Culture and Society) and deferred until Fall 2018. I was just wondering if anyone out there has lived in Edinburgh and knows a bit about the cost of living (monthly rent of a flat/university housing), bills, groceries, etc. I have checked Edinburgh's website, however they do not offer much in the way of the actual cost of student housing, just the fact that it is available. My wife and I will be heading over next august and just want to get an idea of how much things typically cost over there (we are from North Carolina)

 

Thanks!

[MarinaLazarus]

Hi!

I have lived in Edinburgh for a year for my master degree. The average rent for a room is around 400-500 £ and it depends on the flat/ location. I don't know about one bedroom flats and whole properties (my flat was a three bedrooms flat, centrally located and it was 850£ per month), I think it really depends on the property and location (and sometimes on the letting agency). About groceries and other stuff, to me it seemed a bit expensive (except for heating and electricity) but I'm from Italy so before brexit the currency wasn't in my favour (Lidl is one of the cheapest supermarkets, though)... one thing you might have to consider is that if your wife is not a student, she will have to pay Council Tax which is calculated on the value of the flat and it include waste and water. It is paid in instalments and can be really expensive. I suggest to contact EUSA  (Edinburgh University students' association), they are really helpful and their site is full of useful information! About the search for an accommodation, be prepared because in August and near the start of the term t can take a bit longer (check fb pages such as Edinroom). Good luck!

[beytwice]

I lived in Edinburgh until 2014 and paid between 350-400 quid/month in rent for a furnished bedroom in a relatively nice (shared) apartment in nice, student-y neighborhoods (Newington and Marchmont), but I know rent prices have gone up in the past few years so the poster above me is probably correct that you'll pay 400-500 per bedroom. It might be less if you and your wife plan to live by yourselves as you shouldn't need an HMO flat (essentially, if there will be people living in the flat that are unrelated, the flat needs to be HMO which I think costs the landlord extra and is sometimes factored into rent prices). Check out Gumtree to get an idea of prices.

Utilities will depend heavily on how much heat and electricity you're using - apologies, I can't remember any useful figures! Water is free, though.