Students should not opt for licensed rentals

IN the final few weeks before the CAO deadline we feel that the issue of safe and affordable college accommodation needs to be raised.

Student accommodation has become a lucrative market, and while the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 goes some way towards protecting students in rented accommodation, tighter regulation of the private rented market is urgently needed.

Parents and students alike should also be aware that the act does not protect a student who signs a set of terms and conditions associated with accommodation offered under another system - licensed accommodation.