Home truths about housing

Students looking for accommodation in some cities will find things very difficult this year. A dearth of legislative control over rents and rent increases is contributing to "a crisis level" of homelessness. In some cases rents have increased by between 20 and 30 per cent in the past year alone. Margaret O'Gorman, public awareness and education manager with Focus Ireland, says: "It is a landlords' market here in Ireland. There are huge demands for private accommodation and landlords can charge remarkably high prices. There is an urgent need for comprehensive research into the whole area of housing. People have a right to call a place a home."

Dublin alone will see a flood of 30,000 first-year students this autumn, and anything up to 60 per cent of these will be looking for rented accommodation. Availability has dropped considerably in recent years and this year, it seems, things are at an all time low. One property expert says the supply of student-suitable flats will drop to virtually zero within a year or two.

Rents are so high that the demands on college hardship funds so far this year are reported in some colleges to have increased six-fold. There have been cases of students who have ended up spending the last two terms moving from one pal's flat to another's each month. Last year UCD even had two cases of students sleeping rough. This is not very good news for freshers filled with joy at the prospect of freedom and mad weekends of parties a-gogo. But colleges and students' unions are well aware of the problem and are doing their utmost to facilitate students in their search for somewhere to live. Many students' unions are producing useful books of guidelines, and USI (the Union of Students in Ireland) is publishing a guide to student housing containing information on all the who, what, why, when, where and don'ts of flat-hunting, which will be available through colleges affiliated to USI.

Lodgings or "digs" are considered to be the best bet for first-year students easing themselves through the transition from the bosom of the family home to the big bad world of cooking, cleaning, washing their own clothes and bill paying - a reality some of us have never come to terms with. In lodgings or digs, you won't have the same sort of privacy or freedom of movement that comes with your own flat, but there'll always be a bit of company, not to mention two meals a day. Prices range from £45 to £55 for five days and £60 to £70 for seven days. It isn't always possible to stay for the full week, which could prove difficult if you've a long distance to travel back home every weekend. Tenants' legislation does not apply to students living in digs, so it is important to set out all agreements on bills, meals, the deposit and notice to quit from the outset.

Alternatively, several colleges reserve on-campus accommodation for first years. It is usually of a secure and high standard; it offers the companionship of other students as well as close proximity to college facilities. The disadvantages are similar in some ways to digs: college authorities tend to cast a disapproving eye on late-night parties and may restrict the number of overnight guests.

Also, on-campus students don't have the few tenants' rights accorded their flat-dwelling peers. If they break the rules set out by college authorities, they tend to find themselves promptly turfed out, and not forgiven. USI has called for legislation to protect the rights of students in digs and on-campus accommodation.

And that leaves . . . flat hunting. The most economical method - and generally the best crack - is for a bunch of students to get together and rent a house to share. In the current market, depending on what part of the country you're in, rents could still be up to £50 a week each, while the maximum weekly grant - designed to cover all weekly costs - is only £45.90. Not surprisingly, a USI poverty survey indicates that almost 60 per cent of students have to find part-time work to pay all the costs of college. By far the best tip for prospective flat hunters is to get out there fast. Some colleges send out lists, but if you are Donegal-based and you're looking for a place in Galway, for instance, it makes a lot of sense to just get to Galway and start looking there.

In UCD, the students union is no longer sending out lists because students just have to be there on the day to secure a place. There is a list at the students' union office - and there are phones you can use. Not only is it important to start searching as soon as possible, but when your are on the house-hunting trail, get on the phone as early as you can each day. Get up - no, it's not pleasant - and get the first edition of the local or evening paper. Mark out anything which sounds even remotely acceptable and start making calls.

You'll soon get the hang of the jargon - e.g. "suit ladies only" tends to imply accommodation which probably won't meet your Feng Shui needs. Even the word "flat" can be suspect - it's not unknown to find a damp shed described as a flat. However, adopting the more salubrious title "apartment" seems to give landlords licence to charge exhorbitant monthly rents. But don't despair, stick with it and something should come up in the end.

Do a very thorough check of any accommodation you view. Frank Shaughnessy of Threshold, the housing advise agency, regularly talks to people who have only discovered the foulest of things after they've signed the lease and moved in. "People can feel embarrassed to go over every corner of a room in front of the landlord, so they just have a quick look around. But if this is to be your home, you are more than entitled to open cupboards, turn on taps to check they work, see if the windows open, if the cooker is working and so on." Never go house hunting alone, both as a security precaution and to get a second opinion - which will be essential for anyone starting to feel a bit desperate - but particularly for first-year students who have no flat hunting experience.

Be careful you don't crumble under the pressure and make rash decisions, advises Frank Shaughnessy. "Students sometimes sign one-year leases even though they know they have no intention of staying on for the summer, but they are afraid they won't get anything else. Then it comes to June and they're off away to earn some money and because they break the terms of the lease they lose their deposit - money they need to get away in the first place."

Students on a grant will also have to budget for weeks when they won't get their grant, i.e. holiday time, but will still have to pay rent to keep their flats.

Threshold has an invaluable information leaflet, Renting for the First Time. There are a couple of pieces of legislation relevant to rented accommodation including the Housing (Registration of Rented Houses) Regulations 1996, the Housing (Rent Books) Regulations, the Housing (Standards for Rented Houses) Regulations 1993 and a Charter for Rented Housing. Further details are available from the Department of the Environment.

According TO Threshold, any agreement you make with the landlord is binding.

All tenants are entitled to a rent book or a written letting agreement. Your rent book or letting agreement must contain detailed information about the tenancy including the address of the landlord and his agent (if any), the terms of the tenancy, the amount of rent and when and how it is to be paid, details of payments other than rent, the amount and purpose of any deposit paid and the conditions under which it will be returned to the tenant. Threshold also advises students to establish under what circumstances the landlord may have access to the flat - and ask to be present when he or she arrives. Before signing any agreement, clarify which repairs will be the responsibility of the landlord or his agent.

Finally, this is going to be your home for at least the next nine months, where you will have to work, rest and play, so think January/February before committing yourself to anything. Bright and airy, yes - draughty and icy cold, definitely not.

For a region by region guide to the housing prospects for students, turn to pages 22 to 24 of this supplement.