University students in protest at 'early' rental fees

Tuesday 21st February 2012

A battle has broken out in a university city after students complained that they are having to sign rental agreements and hand over large sums of money almost a year early to secure their homes, because of pressure from landlords and agents.

About 1,500 students from both Oxford and Oxford Brookes universities have signed a petition calling on agents to adopt a new code of practice. They accuse agents of exploiting students and raking in thousands of pounds up to ten months before they will be moving in to rental accommodation.

But one agent said that rogue agents were refusing to agree to the code – and that students were partly to blame.

He said he had even been offered bribes to release accommodation early.

Brookes student union adviser Jo Cox said first-year students were pressured in October and November to sign up for houses for the following academic year. She estimated students were paying up to £775 each in administration fees, a holding fee, a deposit and at least the first month’s rent up-front.

She said some international students, without UK-based guarantors, are asked for six months’ rent in advance.

Wendy Dant, from the Brookes student advice centre, said: “It really is not fair on the students to make them make big financial decisions when they’re not ready to. No-one else would be asked to sign up for a property ten months in advance.”

The proposed ethical code of practice would ask letting agents not to pursue students to sign contracts early, and not to advertise properties for the next academic year until February 1.

Chris Shahab, of letting agents Hutton Parker, said: “I know of one letting agent this year who put out their list of properties (for the following academic year) at the beginning of October, when tenants had only moved in in September. Landlords are scared they’re not going to let their properties out.”

He said the company would be happy to sign up to an ethical code of practice, but it needed all firms in the city to agree for it to work.

Simon Tyrrell, manager of Finders Keepers student letting division, said: “We are in a difficult situation.  

“I have tried to get consensus between the various student letting agencies on a launch date. Currently, we are proposing  February 1 to release properties for the following academic year.  

“As usual, though, the reputable agents are all for it but the rogue agents won’t agree to it.  

“Matters aren’t helped by the fact that Oxford Brookes Student Accommodation is one of the letting agents who will not agree to the date and in fact, release their properties far ahead of the others. I feel Oxford Brookes, of all organisations, should be leading from the front.

“Many agents and landlords point out that the early start dates are not being driven by the agents but by the students themselves. One landlord came up to me and said that he’d been approached in October by four students wanting to rent his property the following academic year. Was he supposed to tell them no?  

“I have been offered bribes on many occasions by students trying to get into their choice of houses. We;re a reputable agency so of course I said no, but how many others wouldn’t?

“It would be great if we could come to a consensus on a date and the Oxford Brookes Students Accommodation could publish a list of accredited agents. So far, however, they have been reluctant to take this step.”