Cityrooms.com Features and Service Offering

Cityrooms.com’s core offering revolves around simplifying the room rental process in London.

They highlight features designed to reduce stress and increase convenience for tenants.

Their “How it works in 6 simple steps” section provides a high-level overview, but deeper reveals more specific aspects of their service.

Simplified Rental Process

The website breaks down the rental journey into distinct, manageable steps:

1. Room Search: Users can browse listings by location or travel time, implying a robust search engine behind the scenes.
2. Make a Decision: This step suggests that comprehensive information (pictures, videos, potentially floor plans) is available to aid in choosing.
3. Make a Booking: Implies an online or assisted booking process.
4. Move In: Indicates support or guidance during the move-in phase.
5. Enjoy Your Stay: Suggests ongoing support during the tenancy.
6. At the End of Your Tenancy: Points to clear procedures for ending the rental agreement.

Deposit Protection and Financial Aspects

A key feature emphasized is “tenants get their money back with our deposit protection.” This is a crucial point for renters, as security deposits are often a significant financial outlay.

Understanding the exact mechanism of this protection is vital.

• Holding Deposit: Equivalent to 1 week’s rent, which converts to the first month’s rent. This is a common practice to reserve a room.
• Security Deposit: Equivalent to 5 weeks’ rent. This aligns with legal limits in the UK (since June 2019, security deposits for new tenancies are capped at five weeks’ rent where the annual rent is less than £50,000, or six weeks’ rent where the annual rent is £50,000 or more, according to Gov.uk).
• First Month’s Rent: Required upfront as part of the move-in money.

Utility and Additional Charges

The website mentions that “tenant’s share of electricity and gas (or heat) consumption, as specified in each individual tenancy agreement,” will be charged. Invoices will be sent with payment demands.

• Transparency on Utilities: While common, prospective tenants should seek clarity on how these shares are calculated and the frequency of invoices.
• Reasonable Costs for Early Termination: The site states “Reasonable costs if the Tenancy is terminated earlier.” This is vague and should be scrutinized. “Reasonable” can be subjective and lead to disputes.
• Late Payment Fee: “Late payment fee as described in tenancy agreement.” This is a critical point that requires careful consideration.

Customer Support and Office Availability

Cityrooms.com highlights its “dedicated service team” and provides an office number (020 7790 5577). Their office hours are listed: 10 am-6 pm Monday-Friday, 11 am-5 pm Saturday, closed Sundays and Bank Holidays. Seraphic-skincare.com vs. Competitors

They also offer appointments outside these hours, “up until late,” which is a flexible option for busy individuals.

• Personalized Service: The offer of “a fresh cup of coffee and listen to office music whilst you wait” at their office implies a welcoming, in-person experience, a rarity in purely online rental platforms.
• Staff Numbers: “Over 100 dedicated staff” and “Over 400 cups of tea drunk a day” (a lighthearted metric) aim to convey a well-resourced and active team.