Fears student accommodation will soon hit 'breaking point' 

ICOS is regularly contacted by students with concerns about substandard accommodation and overcrowding.

The substandard rental conditions which international students are forced to endure in Ireland could deteriorate even further in September when third-level colleges return, the Irish Council for International Students has warned.

"We are increasingly concerned that it is worsening and there is a lack of availability," said ICOS executive director Laura Harmon. 
"We will see a real breaking point in September when we see all of the students back again.” 

ICOS is regularly contacted by students with concerns about substandard accommodation and overcrowding, she said.

We are trying to ensure that landlords are held to account if they breach overcrowding regulations and to ensure that the councils are enforcing that. There is a need to address this issue.

Representatives from the council are currently meeting with the housing spokespeople of political parties and are hoping to meet shortly with Housing Minister Darragh O’Brien.

Recently, the council lodged a complaint with the Residential Tenancies Board about the conditions in which an international student has been living in Dublin, after coming here to learn English.

A report regarding various overcrowded accommodation has been made to Dublin City Council, according to Ms Harmon.

The Irish Examiner revealed last month that growing numbers of international students coming to Ireland to learn English are ending up sleeping on the streets and couch-surfing because of difficulties in securing accommodation. One student purchased an old car for €800 to sleep in because she could not find accommodation in Dublin.

Recently, Sebastian Carvallo Farina and four others had to sleep on the street in Cork city one weekend after they were unable to find accommodation. Sebastian ended up couch surfing, having come to Ireland at the end of March to study English. He said he has since found accommodation in a shared room but it took him six weeks to find it.

The rent report from Daft.ie for the first quarter of 2022 found there were fewer than 1,400 properties to rent nationally at the beginning of February. The number of properties was at an all-time low in Munster.