Student-community commission tackles off-campus housing education
A city commission which brings students and residents together is looking into ways to improve the renter experience for off-campus housing.
Each year, thousands of students at Miami University seek out off-campus housing in Oxford, many of them signing leases for the first time. Members of Oxford’s Student Community Relations Commission (SCRC) and a capstone class are working on materials to help students better understand the rental process.
At last week’s SCRC meeting March 14, members of the POL 466 capstone class, led by professor Matt Arbuckle, presented ways to inform students.
“Our main goal is really educating students, and just renters in the Oxford area in general, about what their rights are as renters,” said Kennedy Cook, a student in Arbuckle’s class, “but also landlord accountability.”
Among the ideas presented, the capstone students suggested pre-lease classes for students and a landlord certification program.
Members of the SCRC raised concerns that students’ rental experiences may differ depending on the type of property manager they rent from. While some properties are maintained by out-of-town rental companies, others operate locally.
“There are a lot of factors that typically prevent students from contacting landlords directly, the biggest one being retaliation,” said Glen Ellerbe, representative from the Oxford Chamber of Commerce. “However, students can effectively manage a system that can protect off campus students.”
Students facing issues with their properties do not have a solid safety net besides contacting their property manager outright, which can be scary for students who fear retaliation. Members of the commission and the capstone class discussed the importance of education on renters’ rights to help combat some of the fear. The SCRC discussed creating pamphlets and holding renter awareness classes for students, as well as the potential for creating a process to certify property managers before they rent out properties.
The SCRC plans to make door hangers which feature best rental practices and renters rights to distribute to students next fall.
