UWI students scare landlords
published: Thursday | November 25, 2004

By Leonardo Blair, Staff Reporter

UNRULY UNIVERSITY students are making it difficult for their batchmates to find off- campus dwellings, with many corporate area landlords now declaring their reluctance to rent their houses to students.

While many elderly landlords refused to be named for this story, a number of them in speaking with The Gleaner explained that the behaviour of the students, particularly the females, have in some instances made them wonder if they were operating brothels.

DIFFICULTY

One official at the University of the West Indies' Lod-gings department explained that this year it has been particularly difficult finding places for students even though there are available properties.

"It has been affecting the students because this year in particular I had the hardest time finding spaces," said the official. "Our students have made it bad for others."

Among the complaints cited by the landlords include students not paying rent; failing to clean the property and, "girls having men jumping the fences."

The UWI official explained that over 900 requests came to her office this school year for off-campus lodgings and she was only able to place some 400 of them. "We have no control over the way the students behave; these students are coming from different backgrounds," she added.

ENTOURAGE

Nadine Beecher, an agent at the Access Rental Agency explained that some persons with properties have rejected university students because they tend to bring their 'entourage' of friends.

"Some of them will rent the property and when you check it out all ten persons are in one place," she said.

SOLUTION

Accommodations officer at the University of Technology (UTECH), Angela Isaacs-Brown also admitted having similar problems reported by the UWI but explained that this year they have found the solution.

"If there is a problem now it must be the students who are complaining," she said. "In previous years we had complaints from landlords but we are now tracking our students. The landlords are also asking for the parents' numbers to report a problem if it arises."