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Looking for accommodation
Posted: 27 November 2005
Finding accommodation in London is one of the hardest things for anyone working in Westminster – it’s probably an issue for many constituency workers too, but even Dante would admit that Central London occupies its own special circle of housing hell.
We have come across a few services and agencies that might help, although as ever just because we’re telling you about them doesn’t mean we endorse or in any way recommend them. If you know of other places people might want to turn to for help, please let us know at notices@w4mp.org and we’ll add them to this far from exhaustive list. And if you use them - for good or ill - let us know.
Speed Renting
You may have tried speed dating, going through as many three-minute meetings as you can face in a bar one evening. Now you can try Speed Renting ™, a simple new concept that tries to help those in the room rental market meet each other in a fun & friendly atmosphere. The service was started by Robert Rams, who works in Parliament, so should be sympathetic to your peculiar needs...
If you’re looking for a room but don’t have the time to trawl around hundreds of different properties, or if you have a room to rent – either as an owner or because you’re looking for a flatmate – then it may be able to what you need. They say they offer "one night, one venue, lots of room letters waiting to meet you, with details of their rooms to offer you, in the area you are looking to rent."
Visit www.speedrenting.com or email info@speedrenting.com for more info.
Spareroom
To be found at www.spareroom.co.uk. They work by waiting for people to register an interest then have an event there.
FlatmateWorld
At http://uk.easyroommate.com/, this claims to be ‘the most updated Flatshare/Houseshare service’ in the UK – we suspect they mean ‘frequently updated’, but obviously if you’re in a hurry to find a flatmate then correct syntax is secondary.
FlatmateClick
Another variation on the theme, you can find them at http://www1.flatmateclick.co.uk/ - and they claim to be ‘the leader in flatmate matching’, whatever that is.
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