By Janine Beacham
WITH rentals so difficult to secure in Margaret River, some Curtin University students are wondering if the university should get housing.
Second year student Grace Lindsay said it took three months for herself and friends to find a house, and that the university could put in more effort to assist.
“It’s ridiculous,” she said.
“Housing is now worse than what it was.
“We were knocked back for about seven houses because we’re students, they went to families.
“We weren’t being fussy, we just didn’t want to be out at Prevelly because of all the driving.”
She said she believed many families were accepted despite only wanting short term rental, but the students were there for the longer term.
“It’s a big shame and it’s really hard,” she said.
She acknowledged it was also hard for students to find accommodation in Perth, with some students’ parents having to buying houses for their children.
Curtin Associate Professor Mark Gibberd said some local real estate agents had been very supportive but he would like to hear from people who can let their houses out to students.
“There’s a heck of a lot of houses empty,” he said.
“We’d like to have more people prepared to provide fully furnished houses for students.”
Ms Lindsay’s housemate Renee Christensen, another second-year student, said it was really hard trying to get housing.
“I’m 26 and I’ve had leases on my own, never had problems in Perth or Sydney,” she said.
“We’re told it’s really easy, but it’s not the case, especially over summer.”
Third-year Curtin student Aaron O’Brien said he and his girlfriend spent eight weeks a year ago trying to find a place in town to rent, but gave up due to a lack of availability.
He is now living on his family’s farm on Metricup Road.
“It’s really a bit of a nightmare,” he said of house-hunting.
“It’s a lot tougher down here than it is in Perth.
“It’s the tourist town factor as well.”
Curtin student Christan Murtha said his main problem with finding accommodation was the set viewing times, which are on weekdays.
This posed a problem for students who were studying, or still in Perth.
“It wasn’t the biggest drama,” he said.
“I’ve found real estate agents good in every way, but there’s obviously a high demand.
“I think it would be fantastic if (the university) had student accommodation.”
One student suggested accommodation to tide students over until they found permanent places would help.
Professor Gibberd said there was a perceived problem, but it was not as bad in reality.
“I’ve never lost a student because they haven’t found accommodation at the right time,” he said.
He said the university would consider obtaining student accommodation if there a need, but it was not immediately on the cards.
He has told some students to tell the university if they have problems finding accommodation.
“Sometimes when you get refused to rent accommodation it’s for a good reason,” he said.
“(But) we do quite a bit to help out these students.
“They need to let us know when they’re having trouble.
“We’ll interact with real estate companies and act as referees.
“The university actively reviews this kind of thing.
“Students are our business.”
He said anyone interested in providing students with accommodation could contact him on 9780 5830.
Margaret River First National senior property manager Robin Hopewell said they often had parents phoning them to ask if they could go on the lease document for their children, taking on the responsibility for rent and property (house owners are still made aware that students will live there).
However, Ms Hopewell said, the students often missed out as homeowners tended to prefer business people.
Even bigger companies such as banks were now looking at buying properties to house their staff due to the rental shortage, she said.
“We have lovely people who apply for every property but still miss out.
“This year we’ve been short of rentals all year, even in winter.”
She suggested that locals who had rooms to spare, such as retirees, might like to rent them out for students.
Empire Margaret River sales executive James Clark said they had no rentals available at all—letting out only four properties in four months, with two pages of waiting lists.
Acton property manager Yvonne McDowell said the lack of rentals in Margaret River was a huge problem for people of all ages, and was not likely to change.
“We need more investors down here perhaps,” she said.
“Because of the shortage, rents are going up.
“I don’t know if it’s a sustainable increase or we’re helping people to get further into debt.”
Professor Gibberd said many students were offered jobs locally, and became part of the community.
He estimated the students put at least $2 million into the local economy per year.