Overseas students taking months to find a place to call home

10/6/2013

ONE in five international students in Adelaide found it difficult to find appropriate accommodation and some spent months searching for lodging they considered suitable.

In an Advertiser-Sunday Mail survey, 20 per cent of the 150 respondents said finding a place to live had proved problematic in their early days in South Australia.

Asked how long it had taken to find a house or unit to meet their needs, a handful of respondents said the search had stretched on for two months, while others wrote of a shorter one- to two-week timeframe.

University of Adelaide international student Ahmed Aiban, 34, said finding accommodation was the biggest problem he faced when he arrived in Adelaide from Saudi Arabia in April 2012.

"They were asking for references, " he said, which was impossible because he did not know anyone in Adelaide.
Most respondents to The Advertiser/Sunday Mail survey said they ended up living in private rentals.

Education Adelaide chairman Bill Spurr said a Student Accommodation Working Party, set up by Education Adelaide and the Adelaide City Council in 2011, "aims to ensure that international students have positive accommodation experiences here".

Real Estate Institute of South Australia chief executive officer Greg Troughton said the issue of having past referees - often needed for rental properties - could prove difficult for prospective tenants from overseas.

"It is not something that has been raised as an issue with the institute, but making those pathways easier for international students is perhaps something we could look at, " he said.

"I know that anyone with a a property for lease in the city or nearby suburbs loves the fact that we have three internationally renowned universities in Adelaide and that they embrace the idea of having students as tenants."

Flinders University's International Office associate director of development and partnerships Matt Taverner said on-campus living was an ideal option.

"With on-campus accommodation available we encourage our international students to take up living options on the Flinders campus and enjoy the numerous activities organised by Flinders Living, " he said.

By Callie Watson
Sourced from AdelaideNow