Students might have some help when it comes to rentals.
Undergraduate students entering the off-campus housing market sometimes find themselves struggling to find rental properties. With the amount of various off-campus housing options, it is difficult to know where to start, university officials say.
Ryan Lombardi, vice president for Student Affairs, and Jenny Hall-Jones, Dean of Students, recently said they have interest in assisting students with their transition from the dorms to rental market.
“The university is not advocating for rental properties, but advocating for the student’s ability to find which off-campus rental properties work best to meet their needs and expectations,” said Lombardi. “Many steps will be required before a plan of action is implemented.”
At this point, the university has no concrete plans to start advocating for students in the rental market. It is only exploring its options, Lombardi said. Hall-Jones directed questions to Lombardi.
As the idea spreads around OU’s campus, several students seem fond of the idea.
“This summer I had a very difficult time finding off-campus housing,” said Tyler Freeman, a fifth-year student studying education. “If there was a resource on campus that I could have utilized to make the search for a rental property easier, I would have taken full advantage of it.”
Students entering their first year of independent living could also benefit from this resource, said Mackenzie Holden, a junior studying communications.
“This is my first year living in an off-campus apartment and I feel that a university-organized resource for assistance in off-campus rentals would benefit first time students in the rental market,” she said.
OU is not the only university to consider offering off-campus housing resources.
In the past year, Ohio State University recognized the need to advocate for students in the rental market and has presented what former interim OSU President Joseph A. Alutto called “off-campus housing excellence.” OSU set up a registry to monitor landlords and their properties after The Columbus Dispatch investigated sub-par housing in the off-campus area near OSU.
As stated in The Columbus Dispatch, “The university will create a registry of student housing owned by responsible landlords. To be on the list, landlords must allow inspectors to check the ‘safety, security and sustainability’ of their properties. They must also meet city housing codes. Students and their parents can use the registry to help them find a safe house to rent.”
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