A Short History of Rooms For Let

Here we briefly detail the history of RoomsForLet.

RoomsForLet was one of the first websites of its kind, matching available rooms to rent with tenants from throughout the UK and overseas. We operated initially from a basement in the Manchester area and still retain our base in the City.

Rooms To Rent Since 2000

We have been online since the year 2000 and provided this service well before the likes of Rightmove and Zoopla were a thing.

It was in the early days of the internet when a database driven website was pretty much unheard of (or too costly to develop) and all content had to be hard coded. As the RoomsForLet service built in popularity this obviously created a lot of work with all adverts needing to be added manually by us.

Adverts were sent by landlords or homeowners by email and an invoice was issued which was to be paid by cheque.

Potential tenants would then simply be able to email the landlord to enquire on their room or property to rent.
It was also a time before mobile smart phones were common place. Property photographs couldn’t simply be uploaded and had to be either sent by post or downloaded from a camera to PC and emailed across to us to upload to the advert.

For landlords and homeowners in the Manchester area we were able to visit properties and photograph them as an additional service.

Renting Rooms in the Early Days

Whilst this may seem a very dated system (which of course it was), back then the only real way for private landlords to advertise individual rooms or HMO’s was in the local press which was firstly more costly and, secondly only visible to those in the local area who had purchased a newspaper or who had access to the free newspapers or journals available at the time.

Whilst newspapers ‘classified ads’ moved online allowing views from a wider area, the cost also increased.
Online, targeted services became ever more popular as they could provide a better service with far lower overheads than mainstream or local media operations, allowing them to cut prices.

RoomsForLet, being one of the first services of its kind, attracted visitors from across the UK and built to generate thousands of views and enquiries from around the world from people looking for rented accommodation in the UK.

Moving Forward with Rooms For Let

That was then and this is now and RoomsForLet has undergone a number of reincarnations both in terms of appearance and functionality. As technology improved, the website was developed in to the powerful database driven service we have today, where landlords and tenants are able to create an account or profile and any enquiries are sent via the system.

Additional development would see powerful matching options, SMS and email notifications, automated reminders, a card payment facility and more.

Rooms For Let remains a leading provider of rooms to rent, posted by private individuals, ‘occasional or accidental‘ landlords and professional landlords alike.

It is very easy to create an account and set up a room to rent advert.

Simply add your contact details and then enter the details of the room you have available. This may be a room in your own home where you can benefit from the governments Rent a Room scheme, or you may have other properties or rooms available.

Remember to have some good photographs ready as this will generate more interest in your advert. However, photographs can be added later if needs be.

A tenant can create a profile and enter all details of the type of room and amenities they require along with location and budget for rent. It’s also a good idea to include a profile photograph although this isn’t required.

Tenant and Advert details are then matched and notifications sent to relevant landlords and tenants by email and SMS.

Please Register Here and begin adding rooms or start your own search. A landlord can also visit our Rooms Wanted section for tenants who are currently looking in all areas. Why not take a look now!