Seán Crowe (Dublin South West, Sinn Fein)
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Question 24: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if his attention has been drawn to the practice of third level institutions and landlords in ownership of purpose-built accommodation charging students three months' rent in addition to a deposit at the start of the first college term; his view on whether this lump sum is overburdening many hard-pressed families in these difficult times. [25094/11]

Willie Penrose (Longford-Westmeath, Labour)
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The Residential Tenancies Act 2004 regulates the tenant-landlord relationship in the private rented residential sector. A dwelling let by a recognised educational institution does not fall within the ambit of the Residential Tenancies Act. Tenancies of dwellings in purpose-built student accommodation let by private landlords fall within the ambit of the Act but part 4 of the Act, relating to certain security of tenure provisions, does not extend to those tenancies where the dwelling qualified for certain tax reliefs.

My Department has no specific responsibility in relation to the supply of accommodation for students or any other sub-group within the private rental sector. Instead, my focus is on the broader good working and regulation of the private rented residential sector. Issues of student accommodation are primarily addressed by the market and by individual third level colleges.

The Act is silent on the amount of the security deposit, if any, that a landlord may require and is also silent on the amount of rent required to be paid in advance, if any. My attention has not been drawn to complaints concerning either practice.

The Centre for Housing Research, now part of the Housing and Sustainable Communities Agency, produced a report on issues regarding private sector provision of student accommodation in 2009. The report, which can be found online at www.housing.ie, concluded that students are well catered for by the private rented sector and that the vast majority of students are broadly happy with their engagement with the sector.