MSE News: Student rent costs soar by 8.5%

Former_MSE_Helen · 5 September 2013 at 12:41PM

"Student rent prices have soared by 8.5% in the past year, with the average price of a room now reaching £357 per month..."

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Student rent costs soar by 8.5%

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dimbo61 · 5 September 2013 at 4:44PM

Please check out the code of standards that many university housing offices now require.
Many lenders do not allow BTL mortgages when renting to groups of students, many insurance companies will not provide Landlord insurance for student properties.
Councils in many parts of the country are using Article 4 and planning objections to stop small student developments ( but not huge ones !!!)
Fire safety,gas safety, electrical safety checks/ certificates, PAT testing, energy saving measures, security measures, demands from students and Parents for a safe, clean property with all mod cons, Fast internet, Sky or BT sport, dishwasher, American fridge freezer, location and all the student nightlife in walking distance.
Property prices are higher in student areas and higher maintenance Every year.

Pincher · 5 September 2013 at 7:20PM

"The research also found that in eight of the areas examined, rents are higher than students are willing to pay. The biggest discrepancy was in Exeter, where the average monthly student flatshare rent was £385, but students said they were only willing to pay a maximum of £300."

So, does this mean that there are lots of empty flats?

Pincher · 5 September 2013 at 7:36PM

dimbo61 wrote: »

Fire safety,gas safety, electrical safety checks/ certificates, PAT testing, energy saving measures, security measures, demands from students and Parents for a safe, clean property with all mod cons, Fast internet, Sky or BT sport, dishwasher, American fridge freezer, location and all the student nightlife in walking distance.
Property prices are higher in student areas and higher maintenance Every year.

Interesting market niche you are going for. The Brunei Royal children bring their own servants, I hear.

Annabee · 5 September 2013 at 7:45PM

My daughter has paid more than the average quoted for the last 2 years. But she is studying in the South East.

I think it is true to say that landlords must make huge profits out of renting to students. They can take a 5 bed house and charge £400 a month each per student, which obviously is far more lucrative than renting to a family. The students will also accept a lower standard of decor than a family would. OK, students are more likely to cause damage, but that's what deposits are for. Also it has become the norm for students to pay rent over the summer as well, even though they won't be needing the accommodation then. My daughter and her housemates reserved a house in January for the following academic year (ie to move in in September) and still had to pay half rent from 1 July, even though they were not allowed any access during this time.

The letting agencies take advantage of the students by charging large fees, and to be honest, they exploit the fact that the students are young and inexperienced and don't know their rights. They (the LAs) are leeches really.

But as much as the private sector milks students as much as they can, I think the university provided accommodation (usually for 1st years) is worse in this respect (cost). My daughter was charged an absolute fortune for her en suite room (and of course most 18 year olds want en suite!) when she was in year one (University of Kent). The room was nice, but I do think the universities are using their student accommodation to squeeze as much cash as possible from their students (and their families).

dimbo61 · 5 September 2013 at 10:44PM

Again please have a look on the Manchster Student Homes website re summer rent !!! and also the standard of room/property you need to be an ACCREDITED LANDLORD
Yes you can make more money from renting out rooms to students rather than renting a family home to a family BUT there is much more work involved, Families can and often do stay long term and not move out after 10/12 months.
By offering a high standard of property and reasonable rents with extras ( SKY/BT) we have no problems getting and keeping tenants
FEES please read the MSH website re FEES ( only rent and deposit allowed) LETTING AGENTS have nice shiny offices and staff to pay!!
Universties provide there own accommodation and charge what they want which is why many students get together and live in shared houses
for the second/third years.
Supply and Demand govern the costs of student rentals.
I looked at a new student development in Liverpool last week where rooms cost £179 per week and it was a 50 week contract.
You get a 32" Smart TV on the wall and en-suite with tiny kitchen with all mod cons and a gym downstairs but OMG that is expensive for LIVERPOOL and 22 square meters. RICH STUDENTS maybe

Annabee · 6 September 2013 at 1:36AM

Sounds like Manchester Uni are protecting the interests of their students, and a good thing too! I only wish more universities did the same.

I think the reason most students only live in university-owed accommodation for the first year is because the universities usually only offer it to 1st years, except in exceptional circumstances. They do not have the capacity to offer it to all students. At least this was the case in every university we visited.

Annabee · 6 September 2013 at 4:02AM

Some universities (Kent cannot be the only university doing this) charge the absolute maximum possible for their accommodation. My daughter's WHOLE loan/grant for her first year was needed to pay her rent for the university accommodation. We needed to pay her a weekly allowance (so that she could eat, and so on!). This is a very common situation for students throughout the country, I believe. So not only do they leave university with a large student loan debt, but also they have had to find work (possibly to the detriment of their studies) and/or rely on their families, to meet living costs. What about those whose families are unable or unwilling to help?

I think universities should feel some duty of care to their students, not use them as cash cows.

silvercar · 6 September 2013 at 6:51AM

dimbo61 wrote: »

Please check out the code of standards that many university housing offices now require.
Many lenders do not allow BTL mortgages when renting to groups of students, many insurance companies will not provide Landlord insurance for student properties.
Councils in many parts of the country are using Article 4 and planning objections to stop small student developments ( but not huge ones !!!)
Fire safety,gas safety, electrical safety checks/ certificates, PAT testing, energy saving measures, security measures, demands from students and Parents for a safe, clean property with all mod cons, Fast internet, Sky or BT sport, dishwasher, American fridge freezer, location and all the student nightlife in walking distance.
Property prices are higher in student areas and higher maintenance Every year.

Different world. Speaking as we go into the 6th year of one of my offspring being in student accommodation half that list is redundant.

Yes to safety checks, never known a student to be concerned with energy saving measures. The students sort out an Internet and TV contract for themselves, never seen an American fridge freezer on the list and only in one year was a dishwasher part of the deal.

Location is important for students, possibly the most important factor.

With the cost incurred as students and the private halls that have emerged over the last few years and that more than ever students are choosing to live at home, some towns are over populated with private house lets. The rent may be higher if let to students, but the risks of having an empty property in certain towns is greater; if you don't let for September there is a high risk of the property being empty for the whole year!

silvercar · 6 September 2013 at 6:57AM

Annabee wrote: »

Some universities (Kent cannot be the only university doing this) charge the absolute maximum possible for their accommodation. My daughter's WHOLE loan/grant for her first year was needed to pay her rent for the university accommodation. We needed to pay her a weekly allowance (so that she could eat, and so on!). This is a very common situation for students throughout the country, I believe. So not only do they leave university with a large student loan debt, but also they have had to find work (possibly to the detriment of their studies) and/or rely on their families, to meet living costs. What about those whose families are unable or unwilling to help?

I think universities should feel some duty of care to their students, not use them as cash cows.

I agree with your costings. Most students need to find some work or rely on their parents.

Generally students from the poorest families get a lot of help in terms of bursaries from the universities, they also of course get a loan/ grant combination which is higher.

According to both my kids, you either need to have parents willing and able to support you or come from the lowest income group, where the grants and burseries are considerable. It is the offspring of the squeezed middle who suffer.

anselld · 6 September 2013 at 8:15AM

Annabee wrote: »

My daughter's WHOLE loan/grant for her first year was needed to pay her rent for the university accommodation. We needed to pay her a weekly allowance (so that she could eat, and so on!). This is a very common situation for students throughout the country, I believe. So not only do they leave university with a large student loan debt, but also they have had to find work (possibly to the detriment of their studies) and/or rely on their families, to meet living costs. What about those whose families are unable or unwilling to help?

If you plug zero parental income into the student loan calculator ...
https://www.gov.uk/student-finance-calculator
you get £3823 maintenance loan plus £3354 grant, giving a total living allowance of £7177. At the other end of the income scale you get maintenance loan of £3575.
So presumably there is a built in assumption that the difference (£3602) will be contributed from parental income.

Annabee wrote: »

I think universities should feel some duty of care to their students, not use them as cash cows.

I agree, though it is arguably the Government who are the main culprits.

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MSE News: Student rent costs soar by 8.5%

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