Vicky (in the striped top) shares a flat with Alex (in the black top) and Laura (Picture: Matthew Chattle/Metro.co.uk)

We all love being nosy about other people’s homes, right?

I can’t be the only one who’d love to gaze into people’s bathroom cabinets and see how they’ve chosen to decorate for Christmas.

That’s part of the reason we take you inside a different person’s rented property each week for our What I Rent series.

The other part is so we can take a proper look at the nightmare that is the housing market in London, and what we’re getting in return for chucking obscene amounts of money at landlords each week.




This week we’re chatting to Vicky, a 24-year-old PR consultant. She shares a three-bedroom flat in Shepherd’s Bush with two housemates: Laura, 24, another PR consultant, and Alex, 26, a Fashion Buyer’s Admin Assistant.

Vicky pays £620 a month, Laura pays £660, and Alex pays £670 (Picture: Matthew Chattle/Metro.co.uk)

Hi Vicky! How much do you pay for this place?

The total for the flat is £1950, which we split slightly differently due to the different room sizes. I pay £620, Laura pays £660 and Alex has the largest room so pays £670.

We have a joint bank account, so we each transfer £50 into the account to cover bills and then if we have money leftover at the end of the year we’re planning to treat ourselves to a nice meal out together.

And what do you get for that money?

Three bedrooms, one living room, one bathroom and a separate toilet room.

How did you find the flat?

We found it on a few different websites, and we instantly loved it so we applied to every site.

We’ve almost been here a year now, we moved in on New Year’s Day.

Do you like where you live?

We’re really happy with the area because we’re so close to Westfield, Shepherd’s Bush Empire and the nice new restaurants at Television Centre, and it only takes 20 minutes to get to Central London.

A good selection of books and bottles (Picture: Matthew Chattle/Metro.co.uk)

Do you feel like you have enough space?

We definitely think we have enough space and it’s the first time we’ve all had a living room since moving to London. The only thing is that it’d be nice to have more storage as it’s very limited.

How did you end up living with Laura and Alex?

Laura and I worked together at the time of moving in, and I used to live with Alex in our old place – a flat we both moved in together as strangers.

How have you made the place your own?

The living room had basic furniture when we moved in (a table and sofa) so we brought our own bits and pieces to put our touch in the place, obviously with a colour scheme of grey and pink!

We’ve also started thinking about pictures and have created a gallery wall to make the room a little more homely. We’re just waiting for our frames for it to be complete.

Alex and Vicky met through SpareRoom, while Vicky and Laura work together (Picture: Matthew Chattle/Metro.co.uk)

Are there any problems with the flat?



Definitely no major issues. There have been a few small things, like we had ants in the summer and the bathroom ceiling started to grow mould as we didn’t have an extractor fan.

Both times we flagged the issue with our landlord and she arranged the appropriate solutions straight away – we had an extractor fan within 48 hours of emailing her.

Any plans to move again?

Our lease is until the summer and we have no plans to move out currently. We really love the flat and we’re very comfortable here so unless circumstances change we’ll be staying here.

And what about buying a place?

It is the dream, but everyone knows the struggle millennials are facing in terms of trying to get on the property ladder. We’ve all said that if we could possibly save the money for a deposit then we’d definitely love to own our own homes.

Shall we have a look around the flat?

The living room has plenty of space for three (Picture: Matthew Chattle/Metro.co.uk)

The housemates have made the flat feel like home (Picture: Matthew Chattle/Metro.co.uk)

(Picture: Matthew Chattle/Metro.co.uk)

Pictures and art on the walls help make the flat their own (Picture: Matthew Chattle/Metro.co.uk)

Ooh, sweets (Picture: Matthew Chattle/Metro.co.uk)

The living room leads into the kitchen (Picture: Matthew Chattle/Metro.co.uk)

A very clean kitchen, might we add (Picture: Matthew Chattle/Metro.co.uk)

(Picture: Matthew Chattle/Metro.co.uk)

(Picture: Matthew Chattle/Metro.co.uk)

Vicky has the smallest room, so pays the least (Picture: Matthew Chattle/Metro.co.uk)

She’s happy with her room (Picture: Matthew Chattle/Metro.co.uk)

(Picture: Matthew Chattle/Metro.co.uk)

(Picture: Matthew Chattle/Metro.co.uk)

Alex has the largest room, and pays £670 a month (Picture: Matthew Chattle/Metro.co.uk)

(Picture: Matthew Chattle/Metro.co.uk)

(Picture: Matthew Chattle/Metro.co.uk)

Laura pays £660 a month for her room (Picture: Matthew Chattle/Metro.co.uk)

Cute, right? (Picture: Matthew Chattle/Metro.co.uk)

The bathroom is on the smaller side (Picture: Matthew Chattle/Metro.co.uk)

(Picture: Matthew Chattle/Metro.co.uk)

But there’s room for razors (Picture: Matthew Chattle/Metro.co.uk)

And, of course, toothbrushes (Picture: Matthew Chattle/Metro.co.uk)

What I Rent is a weekly series that’s out every Tuesday at 10am. Check back next week to have a nose around another rented property in London.

How to get involved in What I Rent What I Rent is Metro.co.uk's weekly series that takes you inside the places people are renting, to give us all a better sense of what's normal and how much we should be paying. If you fancy taking part, please email whatirent@metro.co.uk. You'll need to have pictures taken of your kitchen, living room, bathroom, and bedroom, plus a few photos of you in your room. Make sure you get permission for your housemates! You'll also need to be okay with sharing how much you're paying for rent, as that's pretty important.

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