Skip to main content

Site navigation

  • University of Technology Sydney home
  • Home

    Home
  • For students

  • For industry

  • Research

Explore

  • Courses
  • Events
  • News
  • Stories
  • People

For you

  • Libraryarrow_right_alt
  • Staffarrow_right_alt
  • Alumniarrow_right_alt
  • Current studentsarrow_right_alt
  • Study at UTS

    • arrow_right_alt Find a course
    • arrow_right_alt Course areas
    • arrow_right_alt Undergraduate students
    • arrow_right_alt Postgraduate students
    • arrow_right_alt Research Masters and PhD
    • arrow_right_alt Online study and short courses
  • Student information

    • arrow_right_alt Current students
    • arrow_right_alt New UTS students
    • arrow_right_alt Graduates (Alumni)
    • arrow_right_alt High school students
    • arrow_right_alt Indigenous students
    • arrow_right_alt International students
  • Admissions

    • arrow_right_alt How to apply
    • arrow_right_alt Entry pathways
    • arrow_right_alt Eligibility
arrow_right_altVisit our hub for students

For you

  • Libraryarrow_right_alt
  • Staffarrow_right_alt
  • Alumniarrow_right_alt
  • Current studentsarrow_right_alt

POPULAR LINKS

  • Apply for a coursearrow_right_alt
  • Current studentsarrow_right_alt
  • Scholarshipsarrow_right_alt
  • Featured industries

    • arrow_right_alt Agriculture and food
    • arrow_right_alt Defence and space
    • arrow_right_alt Energy and transport
    • arrow_right_alt Government and policy
    • arrow_right_alt Health and medical
    • arrow_right_alt Corporate training
  • Explore

    • arrow_right_alt Tech Central
    • arrow_right_alt Case studies
    • arrow_right_alt Research
arrow_right_altVisit our hub for industry

For you

  • Libraryarrow_right_alt
  • Staffarrow_right_alt
  • Alumniarrow_right_alt
  • Current studentsarrow_right_alt

POPULAR LINKS

  • Find a UTS expertarrow_right_alt
  • Partner with usarrow_right_alt
  • Explore

    • arrow_right_alt Explore our research
    • arrow_right_alt Research centres and institutes
    • arrow_right_alt Graduate research
    • arrow_right_alt Research partnerships
arrow_right_altVisit our hub for research

For you

  • Libraryarrow_right_alt
  • Staffarrow_right_alt
  • Alumniarrow_right_alt
  • Current studentsarrow_right_alt

POPULAR LINKS

  • Find a UTS expertarrow_right_alt
  • Research centres and institutesarrow_right_alt
  • University of Technology Sydney home
Explore the University of Technology Sydney
Category Filters:
University of Technology Sydney home University of Technology Sydney home
  1. home
  2. arrow_forward_ios ... Newsroom
  3. arrow_forward_ios ... 2019
  4. arrow_forward_ios 12
  5. arrow_forward_ios Share housing a problem for international students

Share housing a problem for international students

4 December 2019
Share housing a problem for international students

The first in a series of reports from a landmark survey of more than 5,000 international students details a minefield of problems for those seeking accommodation in Australia.

Funded by StudyNSW as part of the Information for Impact project, the study is the work of UTS Law’s Dr Laurie Berg and UNSW Sydney's Bassina Farbenblum and builds on their previous research into international student employment and wage theft.

Concerned about exploitative working and living conditions, the NSW government supported the study to better understand international students’ needs and generate effective responses.

The first report - Living Precariously: Understanding International Students' Housing Experiences in Australia - reveals that, for more than one in three international students (36%), share housing is their first home on arrival.

The students most frequently encountered illegal or poor living conditions with 57% experiencing these conditions in their first share house.

The problems include: overcrowding, unsafe accommodation, paying in advance for accommodation that does not exist, intimidation or harassment by a landlord or another tenant, landlords moving extra people into the accommodation without the student’s consent, sudden increases in rent in the middle of a rental period, and unfair evictions. 

Exploitation and poor housing were not restricted to students in English language or vocational colleges - most problems were experienced by similar proportions of university students.

UNSW Sydney’s Bassina Farbenblum says they expected to find that students would be more vulnerable to scams and exploitation when they organised share housing online from their home country:

In fact, we found that deception and poor housing conditions were just as common for international students who organised their housing here. Exploitation is thriving unchecked in the wild west of the share house market and international students can’t avoid it simply by organising housing after they arrive in Australia.

Problems were most commonly experienced among respondents who organised their share house through social media like Facebook and WeChat or on peer-to-peer sharing websites including Gumtree and Flatmates.com.au.  

UTS Law’s Dr Laurie Berg says half of international students used one of these platforms to organise their share house and reported the highest rates of deception, overcharging, demands for money upfront and poor living conditions:

We now know that it’s the advertisements on peer-to-peer sharing platforms like Gumtree and Flatmates.com.au and social media that lure the most international students into exploitative housing situations. In fact, 11% of students who used Gumtree paid for accommodation that did not even exist. These sites must invest resources to protect and empower these vulnerable users. 

The authors conclude that exploitative housing situations can impact international students’ emotional, physical and financial wellbeing, and seriously affect their studies.  

Farbenblum and Dr Berg argue that all involved with international students should play their part in ensuring the students have a positive experience:

The findings of this study demand an investment of resources in timely and systemic responses. Education providers must provide services to empower and support international students. Governments must step up and direct enforcement efforts to hold rogue education providers accountable and break cycles of impunity.

The authors’ next report in 2020 will present further survey data on interventions that can empower international students to effectively avoid or address these problems.

Byline

Kerrie Douglass
Share
Share this on Facebook Share this on Twitter Share this on LinkedIn
Back to News in Faculty of Law

Acknowledgement of Country

UTS acknowledges the Gadigal People of the Eora Nation and the Boorooberongal People of the Dharug Nation upon whose ancestral lands our campuses now stand. We would also like to pay respect to the Elders both past and present, acknowledging them as the traditional custodians of knowledge for these lands. 

University of Technology Sydney

City Campus

15 Broadway, Ultimo, NSW 2007

Get in touch with UTS

Follow us

  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • Facebook

A member of

  • Australian Technology Network
Use arrow keys to navigate within each column of links. Press Tab to move between columns.

Study

  • Find a course
  • Undergraduate
  • Postgraduate
  • How to apply
  • Scholarships and prizes
  • International students
  • Campus maps
  • Accommodation

Engage

  • Find an expert
  • Industry
  • News
  • Events
  • Experience UTS
  • Research
  • Stories
  • Alumni

About

  • Who we are
  • Faculties
  • Learning and teaching
  • Sustainability
  • Initiatives
  • Equity, diversity and inclusion
  • Campus and locations
  • Awards and rankings
  • UTS governance

Staff and students

  • Current students
  • Help and support
  • Library
  • Policies
  • StaffConnect
  • Working at UTS
  • UTS Handbook
  • Contact us
  • Copyright © 2025
  • ABN: 77 257 686 961
  • CRICOS provider number: 00099F
  • TEQSA provider number: PRV12060
  • TEQSA category: Australian University
  • Privacy
  • Copyright
  • Disclaimer
  • Accessibility