Are you ready to move into your student house? | Guest Post

There is so much you need to know before moving into your student house, here are some tips from Walton Robinson to help you along on your way. Before you start -  why not read over our top 10 tips for what to do before you move out to help avoid deposit charges, which you can check out here. Hopefully you find this post interesting as there are so many different parts of moving into a student house which students aren't made aware of.

1) Make a plan in advance -There is nothing worse than not having a plan for an event like this. When moving house, you want everything to be as stress free as possible. Maybe you can your family and friend if they can lend a hand? If there's a few of you moving together, it could be worth hiring a van so you can do it all in one trip!

2) Paperwork - Moving is stressful, before you move into your house it is vital you make sure that all paperwork is complete and all fee and rent payments have been made. If you're in a group, make sure every single one of you have completed everything - if just one person is missing one payment or piece of paperwork we won't give out any keys at all until everything is 100% complete!

3) Collecting the keys - Check with your agent or landlord if there is a certain time you have to collect your keys. At Walton Robinson it must be after 3pm and you must call up and make an appointment in advance. Speak to your housemates about when they're moving in, the first person to come to the office can collect all the keys for each tenant.

4) Know your point of contact - When you collect your keys make sure you are given the number and email address of the person you need to contact if there are any issues with the property, and if there is a separate number for out of hours’ emergencies. This will either be the landlord or, if your property is managed by Walton Robinson, your property supervisor. You can also find details here if WR manage your property. We also appoint a lead tenant, someone who is our point of contact for when we need to inform you about viewings and inspections.

5) Inventory - You will be given an inventory when you move in, either from Walton Robinson or the landlord. Make sure you know the deadline for returning the completed inventory (with WR it is seven days) and that you pay close attention to every item and make any corrections that may be necessary. This will help when it comes to moving out and getting your deposit back at the end of the tenancy.

6) Utilities & Bills- You will be asked to record meter readings on your inventory form. Keep a note of them as you will need this information when creating new utilities accounts. If you need any help with this, call your property supervisor and they will be happy to help.

7) Council Tax -  Students are exempt from paying council tax but you will need to inform the council of your exemption status or you will be sent a bill. Download the form here.

8) Summer Arrangements - If you're moving your things in but not actually living there over the summer, let your landlord or agent know. This bit's obvious but remember to switch the heating and any plugs off before you leave and make sure you don't leave any valuables on display! You never know who might be peaking in.

*Guest Post By Walton Robinson. 

4 Ways To Live A Healthier Lifestyle | Tips and Tricks.

Hi all, how are we doing? SO sorry about the delay between posts at the moment, I am sad that when I am busy my student blog suffers but I am hoping to change this soon and be able to create a weekly post for this blog, if you have any suggestions of what you'd like to see on my blog do let me know, I am happy to write about what you lot like to read. Today I am bringing you an advice styled post on how to live a healthier lifestyle whilst at university, I thought I'd give you some tips and tricks how to implement a healthy lifestyle whilst living at university (although we all know it is SO hard). Let me know your top tip for keeping healthier whilst at university.

Tip One: Less Drinking. 
Being a university student of course involves drinking a lot, there are so many parties and events which involve drinking, going to party and not drinking can often make you feel like an outcast and people saying you're boring. For this tip I am totally NOT asking you to give up alcohol all together, but I am saying to cut down the booze to a once or twice a week instead of seven days a week. OR just drink when it is a big event, it is ok to say no to drinking and if your friends have a problem with that then that is their own problem, not yours.

Tip Two: Ditch The Fast Food.
Speaking from experience with this one, but eating takeaway every single day of week is going to make you unhealthy, feel like crap and give you less energy. Although pizza is good and as is Chinese food it is important to sometimes cook for yourself, I have found the most useful site I have for creating dishes from the leftover food in your cupboards is Big Oven you share three items you have in your house and it will create tasty dishes for you to make. Do this when you feel like ordering takeaway as you have no food in as it will save you money, help you stay healthy and give you a new meal idea.

Tip Three: Alternatives To Smoking. 
In 2016 vaping is the new way forward, smoking is old news and if you want to smoke something that tastes better and is a lot less damaging to yourself than smoking, as well as being able to do it indoors (no more trips outside in the rain) vaping is the one for you. Being a student vaping is the new way to smoke socially without harming those around you, Vapelux offer a HUGE range of vaping tools to get you started as well as what you need to start smoking Shisha including many Shisha pen flavours.

Tip Four: Start Working Out.
Although a gym membership isn't always friendly to a student budget there are SO many other fun ways to exercise which can work for a small budget or even no budget. Some examples of this are swimming and running. With Swimming you can pay as you go or get a student pass for a fraction of the price. Running with friends is a totally free way to hang out as well as work out. Other ideas could include buying some weights and working out at home or the university gym is usually cheaper than other 24 hour gyms.

What are your top tips for getting healthier at university? 

*In Collaboration with VapeLux. 

5 Things EVERY New Student Needs To Know | Tips and Tricks!

A bit of a different one on the blog today and although the I have a totally different blog I decided I would bring you a student related post on Dungarees & Donuts, as I know I still have some student readers here and I thought it would make a good Wednesday post, having 6 months of my degree left after already studying for 3 years I would say I have a good idea on how to live life as a student and all of the things which come with it. From saving money to nights out, here on Dungarees & Donuts I've experienced it all. Today I thought I would share just 5 things all new students need to know although I could probably go on for weeks. I hope you enjoy this post and if you fancy reading any other student posts feel free to check out my other blog Dungarees & Degrees.

1. Student = Discount
Being a student means you get discount on so many things, from food to clothing and even cheap nights out. It's amazing being a student because you get so many discounts and it enables you to spend more. Although sometimes it can be a bad thing, hello 40 pairs of shoes.

2. Cheap Travel
Similar to the last point but this one is aimed more at travel as there is so many different ways for a student to travel. Stagecoach offer an amazing discount for university students meaning that you can travel around the city for a discount price. As well as the discount you can get on trains by using a Railcard.

3. It's OK to feel lost.
During the first few weeks of university everyone is feeling the same way as you are, a bit lost and unsure of what to do as well as probably homesick and trying to adjust to life whilst at university, it is totally fine to feel this way.

4. Enjoy Freshers
Whilst you are in first year university is nowhere as serious or as hard as the years to come, it is totally worth having your parties and getting drunk lots during the first year before the hard work commences after. When you stop being a fresher it totally changes everything!

5. The Pot Noodle Diet
When you first become a student it often becomes a case of eating easy food for the next few months until you get settled. Pot noodles are a personal favourite of mine along with pasta and pizza takeaway. As long as you eat some stuff which is relatively healthy eventually, you'll be fine!

I hope you enjoyed my tips on being a new student!

Meet Parcel For Me | Tips and Tricks

Being a student and getting parcels delivered is a nightmare, being in lectures at the most random of times means I usually miss my deliveries and have to wait to get them redelivered *ball ache*. That pair of shoes which are far too high and you would never be able to walk in which you ordered at 4am after a lot of alcohol you even want those to be delivered or that random thing you ordered but don't have a clue what it is, having that red card in front of is making the suspense unbearable, I mean what the hell is it?!

Today I am bringing you Parcel For Me the company that puts YOU in charge of your delivery, uh yes please! Making the online check out process even easier whether you are drunk or sober you'll have an easy time checking out, does anybody else find it tiring to enter your card details like 50 times over? Being a student around loan time, I place a lot of orders and find it hard to keep track of delivery times and who is delivering what so this is a super helpful service which you should all check out and make delivery as simple as it should be.

Who is looking forward to not finding their deliveries on the roof (yep one firm really does that) or in their bin anymore?

*Cheers to that* 

*Sponsored Post

Best Student Deals This Week #2 | Money Saving

When I first did my 'best student deals post' I never expected it to be the most popular post on my blog, so I thought I'd bring you another one. Although it's been many months since my last one, you can feel free to read it here. Being a student money can often be tight, so finding ways around this is always fun and I enjoy being savvy. Often clothes aren't a top priority but with one of the amazing things in this post you may be able to change that this month. If you guys like this post, please let me know in the comments and I'll happily bring you another sooner than the last one I promise.

ASOS 20% off with UNiDAYS: 
For 48 hours only, UNiDAYS are bringing students 20% off on ASOS.com which is perfect for those looking to update their winter wardrobe with new staple items like coats and bags. I treated myself to a bag already, this ends on Friday 21st so make the most of this today!

Free Amazon Prime For 6 Months: 
There is absolutely no catch with this perk, you get six months free next day delivery with Amazon, which is awesome right? Forgotten that family Birthday, Amazon have you covered! You can also get 50% off Prime for the following year at only £39 a year which in my opinion again is totally worth it, even I did pay it by accident.

35% off Domino's when you spend £20:
You read this right, I couldn't believe I didn't know about this deal sooner! But with Student Beans you can get 35% off Domino's for the foreseeable future, which can either mean one of two things. The first being the money can be spent on sides like cookies and wedges OR you save money, either way win win! Get the deal here.

12% off 12-25 Railcards: 
Railcards are totally worth while discounts anyways, saving you up to 1/3 on your fares and if you travel a lot or even if you don't in my opinion it is totally worth having. For a one year card it is £30 and with the discount it is a further £3.60 off. If you want to save even MORE money it's worth investing in the three year rail card which is £70 and you can get the 12% off again.

50% off Spotify Premium for a year:
As much as I LOVE Spotify their adverts annoy the hell out of me, with premium you can listen to songs on the go *saving you having to buy the albums* and all music is advert free all day everyday for only £4.99 a month, can't really argue with that price.

I hope you like reading these posts, and I hope to get a weekly one out to you all!  

10 Ways To Spend Less Money On Food At University | Tips and Tricks

Guest post by Bronni from Student Money Saver

University is expensive, after you’ve factored in rising rents, travel costs, government cuts, textbooks and everything else you’re expected to pay for as a student, buying food can seem almost unaffordable. But you don’t need to deprive yourself, if you follow these tips you should be able to eat well and have a bit of money left over to have fun with.

1. Eat breakfast

Nobody wants to get up any earlier than they absolutely have to when they’ve got a 9am lecture, but if you’re someone who likes to grab a mid-morning pastry before your next seminar it can add up to a fair bit of money over time. If you can, eat before you leave so you won’t be as hungry, or just throw a cereal bar in your bag.

A box of six Special K bars costs about the same as a single Costa croissant, and that’ll sort you out for a whole week!

2. Bring a packed lunch

If you’re super prepared, bringing a sandwich can mean serious savings at lunchtime. Even though a Tesco meal deal or a hot lunch from the canteen isn’t that expensive, it’s always cheaper to bring something in. If you get access to a microwave saving leftovers from the previous night makes a change to sandwiches and further cuts down on waste.

3. Don’t shop when you’re hungry

This is an easy one, it’s been proven that shopping on an empty stomach means that you’re more likely to buy food that’s less healthy, AND spend more! Grab a snack before you leave to cut down on junk food and save yourself a bit of cash.

4. Make a list (and stick to it)

Sit down to make a list before you go to the supermarket, it’ll help you not to forget what you actually need and stop you picking up the little ‘extras’ that can end up costing you. I like the app Keep (Android or iOS) for keeping all sorts of notes and lists on your phone.

5. Don’t buy too much

The fact is that most packets of food at the supermarket are designed to feed a family of four, which is probably why it always seems like you’re throwing mouldy food away. By choosing loose fruit and veg or smaller packs of meat you will save money, despite not being as good ‘value’.

If there’s a special offer on a 1 KG bag of carrots, it’s still not going to turn out cheaper than buying the two loose carrots you’re likely to eat in a week.

6. Buy frozen

Where these rules don’t apply is on frozen food. It’s amazing value for students because it saves time, doesn’t go off, and you’ll know you’re going to eat it all eventually. A bag of potatoes the same price as a bag of Aunt Bessie’s mash will make a lot more mash, but by the time you get to that point those potatoes will have all grown eyes and be getting a bit mushy. Yuck.

7. Try couponing

Couponing is amazing, see that smoothie and quiche? Totally free. I’ve written an absolutely massive guide to couponing, and it really isn’t difficult to get into if you’ve got a bit of time. It’s amazing for picking up the little luxurious things you can’t really afford. I 100% recommend giving it a try, you’re not going to come away with trollies full of freebies like they do on TV, but a free bar of chocolate every now and again is definitely realistic.

8. Yellow stickers

There’s nothing I love more than a yellow sticker reduction, and there’s definitely a knack for hunting down the best bargains - they’re all explained in my article on supermarket reductions tips & tricks if you want to find out how.

9. Make sure you always have food in the house

It’s always tempting to buy a takeaway when there’s no ‘easy’ food in your kitchen, which is why I recommend ALWAYS having an emergency ready meal or some pasta sauce in the freezer. When you want a Chinese you’re probably just going to do it, but sometimes you only make an order because you’d rather spend £20 than walk in the cold to Tesco.

10. Use cashback and discount codes

I’m not going to advise you not to buy takeaways, they’re DELICIOUS and sometimes nothing else will hit the spot. But if you do, try and remember to look up a discount code and get cashback. You can get 50% off at Pizza Hut and Domino’s quite often, so it’s always worth keeping an eye out.