Student Accommodation

Gal2glam

My student accommodation is refusing to give refunds “because we could have lived here during the pandemic.” Surely this isn’t right? Is there someone I can contact about this?

Dav010

Gal2glam wrote: »

My student accommodation in Cork is refusing to give refunds “because we could have lived here during the pandemic.” Surely this isn’t right? Is there someone I can contact about this?

Could you have lived there? You rented the accommodation, independent of your course.

splinter65

Gal2glam wrote: »

My student accommodation in Cork is refusing to give refunds “because we could have lived here during the pandemic.” Surely this isn’t right? Is there someone I can contact about this?

Why would you be entitled to a “refund”?

Edgware

If, as in some cases, you were told to vacate student accommodation you would have a case.
If not and you choose to vacate it was your decision.

JustAThought

Hold on - if your accommodation is owned by the university you might have a case - particularly as they would be the same university that presumably cancelled all lectures and put your services and resources onto an online only basis.

Otherwise, yes, you could have lived there.

If you have another year to go and it is university owned accommodation it might be worth arguing for an extension of use into the next calandar year to balance the time you were told not to go into the university for lectures/practicals. It might only be a few months but would no doubt reflect the ethics and mission statement of the university Nd their corporate values and mission towards students. Well worth a good effort.

If its private, forget it. You could have cocooned there!!!

Gal2glam

JustAThought wrote: »

Hold on - if your accommodation is owned by the university you might have a case - particularly as they would be the same university that presumably cancelled all lectures and put your services and resources onto an online only basis.

Otherwise, yes, you could have lived there.

If you have another year to go and it is university owned accommodation it might be worth arguing for an extension of use into the next calandar year to balance the time you were told not to go into the university for lectures/practicals. It might only be a few months but would no doubt reflect the ethics and mission statement of the university Nd their corporate values and mission towards students. Well worth a good effort.

If its private, forget it. You could have cocooned there!!!

Thanks for your response, I’ll look into it.

Dav010

JustAThought wrote: »

Hold on - if your accommodation is owned by the university you might have a case - particularly as they would be the same university that presumably cancelled all lectures and put your services and resources onto an online only basis.

Otherwise, yes, you could have lived there.

If you have another year to go and it is university owned accommodation it might be worth arguing for an extension of use into the next calandar year to balance the time you were told not to go into the university for lectures/practicals. It might only be a few months but would no doubt reflect the ethics and mission statement of the university Nd their corporate values and mission towards students. Well worth a good effort.

If its private, forget it. You could have cocooned there!!!

Renting student accommodation isn’t dependent on you attending lectures, it is only dependent on you being a student at the college. Also, student accommodation tends to have Wi-Fi, so you can go online there. Unless the accommodation closed, which in this case it didn’t, then it is hard to see how a refund is due.

Incidentally, dedicated student accommodation (section 37) was included in the emergency legislation relating to evictions.

(a) references to landlord shall be construed as including references to licensor within the meaning of section 37 of the Residential Tenancies (Amendment) Act 2019,

Gal2glam

Dav010 wrote: »

Renting student accommodation isn’t dependent on you attending lectures, it is only dependent on you being a student at the college. Also, student accommodation tends to have Wi-Fi, so you can go online there. Unless the accommodation closed, which in this case it didn’t, then it is hard to see how a refund is due.

Incidentally, dedicated student accommodation (section 37) was included in the emergency legislation relating to evictions.

(a) references to landlord shall be construed as including references to licensor within the meaning of section 37 of the Residential Tenancies (Amendment) Act 2019,

Well I’m still paying for rent and bills for a flat I’m not living in and am out of a job. Sure I could live there but if I’m not having classes in the college what’s the point?

JustAThought

Gal2glam wrote: »

Well I’m still paying for rent and bills for a flat I’m not living in and am out of a job. Sure I could live there but if I’m not having classes in the college what’s the point?

So you could say that given the university has closed the library, instructed you to stay away from the resources on the campus and cancelled your face to face lectures and tutorials, combined with the extraordinary emergency legislation which trapped you in your parents hime and left
you unable to return to your student accommodation, the act of the university shutting its campus to you made the need for dual
housing an unprecedented financial burden and an unneeded additional resource that you could not use for the purpose intended.

Dav010

Gal2glam wrote: »

Well I’m still paying for rent and bills for a flat I’m not living in and am out of a job. Sure I could live there but if I’m not having classes in the college what’s the point?

I can see your viewpoint, you are paying for accommodation you are not using. But your rental is not dependent on your classes. You still have full use of the property.

splinter65

Gal2glam wrote: »

Well I’m still paying for rent and bills for a flat I’m not living in and am out of a job. Sure I could live there but if I’m not having classes in the college what’s the point?

Why would the landlord give you your money back because you decided not to live there anymore?

Ray Palmer

Gal2glam wrote: »

My student accommodation in Cork is refusing to give refunds “because we could have lived here during the pandemic.” Surely this isn’t right? Is there someone I can contact about this?

Can you clarify where the accommodation is and the connection to the college?

Gal2glam

Ray Palmer wrote: »

Can you clarify where the accommodation is and the connection to the college?

Uh no I won’t say where the accommodation is. It has no connection to the college.

Ray Palmer

Gal2glam wrote: »

Uh no I won’t say where the accommodation is. It has no connection to the college.

I meant whether it was on college grounds or not. So there is your answer the accommodation was not connected to you going to college. You are liable for the rent.

I get the desire to stop paying rent but think about the situation. You agreed to rent the property and then moved out expecting not to pay rent. If the landlords told you to leave and refused to give you rent back or deposit would you complain? Were you happy you found a place given how hard it is to find accommodation for students?

Gal2glam

Ray Palmer wrote: »

I meant whether it was on college grounds or not. So there is your answer the accommodation was not connected to you going to college. You are liable for the rent.

I get the desire to stop paying rent but think about the situation. You agreed to rent the property and then moved out expecting not to pay rent. If the landlords told you to leave and refused to give you rent back or deposit would you complain? Were you happy you found a place given how hard it is to find accommodation for students?

I’ve not stopped paying my rent. Lots of other places have refunded their students, I’m not a horrible person for wishing I could have my rent back. How hard it is for students to find accommodation is not my problem.

Ray Palmer

Gal2glam wrote: »

I’ve not stopped paying my rent. Lots of other places have refunded their students, I’m not a horrible person for wishing I could have my rent back. How hard it is for students to find accommodation is not my problem.

You want to and are complaining. I didn't ask you whether it was your problem I asked if you were happy you could find a place? It will be your problem if you can't find a place to live as landlords refuse to take students as they all try to break rental agreements. Never said you were horrible trying to understand your logic and pointing out the double standards expected from people. Lots of students have stopped paying rent to private landlords with no connection to colleges.

Gal2glam

Ray Palmer wrote: »

You want to and are complaining. I didn't ask you whether it was your problem I asked if you were happy you could find a place? It will be your problem if you can't find a place to live as landlords refuse to take students as they all try to break rental agreements. Never said you were horrible trying to understand your logic and pointing out the double standards expected from people. Lots of students have stopped paying rent to private landlords with no connection to colleges.

My rent is paid in full up front so I have no choice in whether I pay it or not. Have you never complained about a situation you didn’t like? I’m simply asking for help I don’t need your attitude with it.

splinter65

Gal2glam wrote: »

I’ve not stopped paying my rent. Lots of other places have refunded their students, I’m not a horrible person for wishing I could have my rent back. How hard it is for students to find accommodation is not my problem.

Youre not a horrible person, I don’t think any one is suggesting that.
But here’s the facts.
Your landlord let his property to you for a fixed amount of time and in return you gave him a fixed amount of rent.
That was a contract you entered into with him.
You decided to leave the property
(It doesn’t matter why. There was nothing wrong with the accommodation).
Now you want some of that money back. Why do you think that your landlord should be out of pocket? He hasn’t broke his side of the contract.

splinter65

Gal2glam wrote: »

My rent is paid in full up front so I have no choice in whether I pay it or not. Have you never complained about a situation you didn’t like? I’m simply asking for help I don’t need your attitude with it.

You are perfectly entitled to complain about a situation you don’t like. You are being told that as much as you don’t like it, you have no grounds to seek a refund of your rent.
That is the “help” you are being given. You can take it or leave it.

Febreeze

You're not getting deposit back.

You broke your contact. If the landlord kicked you out and refused your deposit in the middle of this crisis, then fair enough, you've grounds to fight, but you don't now.

You made the choice to upheave yourself, for reasons yourself has decided. The landlord made an agreement with you, I hope it was contracted as well, for both parties. Granted you've opted to not live there due to the situation which itself is sh"t as it is but you still had an agreement.

If I told my landlord now that I wasn't going to pay rent because of the situation but demanded my deposit back because I've ran back to my parents house, he would laugh at me.

Renting, privately or a student accommodation, isn't easy in itself but you can't make rules up as you please either.

If your landlord is sound enough and understands you've moved for these reasons, then fair play to them but they don't have to give you anything back as you've moved in the middle of a contact. You say the accommodation isn't connected to your college, well then it's not the colleges problem. It's your own situation.

I've lived in private rented places before and moved out in the middle of a contract but never demanded a deposit back. Landlord still needs to pay their mortgages as far as I'm concerned.

Ray Palmer

Gal2glam wrote: »

My rent is paid in full up front so I have no choice in whether I pay it or not. Have you never complained about a situation you didn’t like? I’m simply asking for help I don’t need your attitude with it.

What attitude? So are you saying you would have stopped paying if you could? I have complained about things I didn't like but never wanted to change an agreement I signed up for. What help would you like? It has been explained you have no recourse and it is what you agreed to. There is no help just an explanation which you don't seem to want to accept

Edgware

Welcome to the real world not the "it's not fair Joe " world beloved of Irish people.
A contract is a contract. The Landlord has kept his side of the agreement.
When you graduate and travel to London or New York you will see how contracts are honoured

Febreeze

Edgware wrote: »

Welcome to the real world not the "it's not fair Joe " world beloved of Irish people.
A contract is a contract. The Landlord has kept his side of the agreement.
When you graduate and travel to London or New York you will see how contracts are honoured

That's the problem these days. Certain minorities think they can just snap their fingers and bam they get what they want. Don't want to live in the apt anymore? Grand I'll move out and get my money back. Sure if it was that easy then I wouldn't be bothering with renting and trying to save for a mortgage knowing I can just move anywhere and get my money back by demanding and stomping my feet like a child. Parents clearly didn't teach this child how life really is and now they've experienced that you can't always get what you want, they want everyone to bow down and agree to their tantrums.

They should count themselves lucky they still have a roof over their heads once they've decided they don't want to pay real money into the real world. Not everyone has the choice to decided what rent they do and don't want to pay. Not everyone can run back to mummy and daddy and cry and say the bold man wouldn't give back their money that they dont own.

OP, grow up.

the_syco

Gal2glam wrote: »

My student accommodation is refusing to give refunds

Gal2glam wrote: »

It has no connection to the college.

If it has no connection to the college, it's normal accommodation that you're staying in whilst you are a student.

Gal2glam wrote: »

Lots of other places have refunded their students

Have you considered asking them how they got refunded?

Brego888

The entitlement is strong here.

It's not the landlords fault you decided not to live there.
If I buy a ticket to a concert, decide not to go, and then contact ticketmaster and say "see that gig that was on last month I couldn't make it in the end can I have my money back?"
How would they respond?

You paid up front for the year so you aren't entitled to anything and you've been given this advice here and don't want to accept it.

It's unfortunate that you are out of pocket but suck it up and welcome to the real world.

Graham

Mod Note

The OP has asked a question and has remained civil throughout. That's more than can be said for some of the responses.

Whether you think the OPs expectations are realistic or not, keep it civil.

newuser99999

Brego888 wrote: »

The entitlement is strong here.

It's not the landlords fault you decided not to live there.
If I buy a ticket to a concert, decide not to go, and then contact ticketmaster and say "see that gig that was on last month I couldn't make it in the end can I have my money back?"
How would they respond?

You paid up front for the year so you aren't entitled to anything and you've been given this advice here and don't want to accept it.

It's unfortunate that you are out of pocket but suck it up and welcome to the real world.

Please don’t compare my living situation to buying a concert ticket and simply not showing up. I’m not sure where you’re getting this sense of entitlement from. I’m in college, work hard and work two jobs during the year and summer to pay for everything myself. God forbid me if I’m now out of money due to a global pandemic like everyone else is.

newuser99999

the_syco wrote: »

If it has no connection to the college, it's normal accommodation that you're staying in whilst you are a student.


Have you considered asking them how they got refunded?

No it’s actually student accommodation. You have to prove that you’re in a college to live there thanks.

Dav010

newuser99999 wrote: »

No it’s actually student accommodation. You have to prove that you’re in a college to live there thanks.

That is a requirement for planning, student accommodation can be rented during the academic year by registered students only.

What the poster meant is that your rental agreement is not dependent on your College being open for classes, nor is the College your landlord.

Are you the op?

newuser99999

Dav010 wrote: »

That is a requirement for planning, student accommodation can be rented during the academic year by registered students only.

What the poster meant is that your rental agreement is not dependent on your College being open for classes, nor is the College your landlord.

Are you the op?

Yes obviously

Dav010

newuser99999 wrote: »

Yes obviously

Why are you using a different avatar? People reading may not realise you are the op.