Six months plus dominated
Fourteen respondents selected 6+ months before, equivalent to 78% of the sample.
Indicative student poll
How far in advance do you start looking for student accommodation?
Starting early was by far the most common answer, with 78% saying they begin looking six or more months in advance.
How did students answer?
Respondents selected one option from four. Percentages are calculated from 18 responses and rounded to whole numbers. Because of rounding, the displayed percentages total 101%.
6+ months before14 responses
78%I left it to the last minute2 responses
11%3-6 months before1 response
6%1-3 months before1 response
6%What does this result suggest?
Within this indicative sample, the accommodation search started early for most respondents rather than being left until the final months before moving.
Last-minute searching was uncommon
Two respondents, or 11%, said they left their search to the last minute.
The middle windows were small
One respondent selected 3 to 6 months before and one selected 1 to 3 months before.
Why this result matters
The result suggests that accommodation decisions may begin much earlier in the student journey than the actual move-in date.
Starting six or more months ahead may reflect the pressure students feel to secure the right combination of price, location, property type and housemates before preferred options disappear. In some university cities, the search for the following academic year can begin while the current year is still well underway.
Early searching can also mean that students are making housing decisions before they know exactly how their finances, friendships or study plans will develop. That makes clear information on contracts, deposits, bills, guarantors and cancellation terms particularly important at the point of search.
The small number choosing the middle time windows should not be read as evidence that those windows are generally uncommon. With only 18 respondents, each answer has a large effect on the displayed percentage.
This indicative poll cannot show whether early searching leads to better outcomes. A larger study could compare search timing with rent paid, satisfaction, distance from campus and whether students later regretted or changed their accommodation choice.
How to report this finding
“78% of respondents to an indicative Unifresher Instagram poll said they start looking for student accommodation six or more months in advance.”
How was this poll collected?
This was a quick audience poll designed to provide an indicative snapshot from people reached through the Unifresher Instagram audience.
- Exact question
- How far in advance do you start looking for student accommodation?
- Answer options
- 6+ months before; 3-6 months before; 1-3 months before; I left it to the last minute
- Responses
- 18 total responses. Raw counts are shown alongside every percentage.
- Audience
- People who viewed and responded to the poll through the Unifresher Instagram audience.
- Collection method
- Unifresher Instagram Stories. Respondents selected one of four fixed answer options.
- Calculation
- Percentages were calculated directly from the raw response totals and rounded to whole numbers. No weighting or adjustment was applied. Because of rounding, the displayed percentages total 101%.
- Verification
- The four response counts were checked against the stated total of 18 responses before publication.
- Representation
- Indicative audience poll. The result reflects respondents to this Unifresher poll and is not statistically representative of all UK university students.
- Editorial independence
- No commercial partner directed or influenced the question, answer options, analysis or interpretation shown on this page.
- Reuse and licensing
- Published aggregate findings may be quoted with attribution. Contact the Unifresher press team before republishing a full chart, graphic or substantial extract. See Data Hub reuse and citation guidance.
Cite this result
78% of respondents said they start looking for student accommodation six or more months in advance. Source: Unifresher Student Accommodation Search Timing Poll, 2026. 18 responses via Instagram Stories, collected 7 August 2026. Indicative poll. unifresher.co.uk/data-hub
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