A representative body for Irish semester and summer study-abroad education programme operators has said it is investigating reports of unexplained increases in the utility fees charged by private student housing companies this summer.
Earlier this year, the Association of Study Abroad Providers Ireland (Asapi), an umbrella group representing some 30 organisations, sought a meeting with Government Ministers over the move to uniform 51-week leases at purpose-built student accommodation properties in the Republic.
In April, the group warned that the decision represented an “existential threat” to the industry, which largely relies on summer vacancies at student housing centres to accommodate its students outside the academic year.
Those 51-week leases were effectively banned by the Government through the passage of the Residential Tenancies Amendment Act in July. The new rules standardise 41-week leases across the sector, giving student tenants the option to request a longer contract if they so choose.
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In a statement, Asapi co-chairwomen Suzi Breslin and Katherine Mulfaul said the €220 million-a-year study-abroad sector here is “deeply appreciative” of the Coalition’s decision to fast-track the amendment to the Residential Tenancies Act before the summer Dáil recess.
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They said the group was “never approached” by the student housing operators about the decision before it was first mooted in early 2024.
“These leases would align with the shareholder’s interests, all the while forcing students to make impossible decisions surrounding their educational futures and commit students and agents to a lease of up to 25 per cent duration in excess of their need,” said Ms Breslin and Ms Mulfaul. “[Longer] leases would force closures and unemployment within the study abroad provider sector, further contribute to the accommodation crisis and damage Ireland’s reputation as a highly sought after destination for international students.”
Meanwhile, the group said it intends to “investigate further” anecdotal evidence of an increase in the fees that private student landlords are charging its members.
“A number of Asapi members recently reported marked disproportionate unexplained rises in ‘utility fees’ from privately operated student accommodation vendors,” said Ms Breslin and Ms Mulfaul. “This is something Asapi intends to investigate further through our membership.”
Asapi was approached for comment last week after The Irish Times reported Global Student Accommodation, which operates some 4,000 student beds in the Republic through its Yugo platform, threatened the Government with legal action in July over the fast-tracked amendment Bill. The legal letter was released as part of a recent Freedom of Information request.
In response to questions, the UK-based group said its “preferred route is not a legal one”. Global Student Accommodation said it wanted to have a “a pragmatic conversation around the challenge of affordability that we see occurring in every European capital city”.
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