Different types of housing
Private Rental
There are now many great websites to help you find share housing such as flatmate.com, flatmates.com.au, flatmatefinders.com.au and gumtree.com.au.
There are also many local community groups and pages on Facebook which have share housing listings, for example the Inner West Housemates group.
You can also get listings of places to rent from real estate agencies and realestate.com.au and domain.com.au.
If you are a tertiary student, there may be an accommodation officer at your college, university or TAFE campus. They will be able to give you a listing of share houses in the area and other assistance finding accommodation.
Some colleges, universities or campuses may offer databases with local share housing options.
Private landlords often list rooms or properties on these databases.
It is important to keep in mind that this does not mean that they are associated with the institution.
Be aware that if your accommodation is associated with a university (e.g. university owned accommodation and residential colleges), your rights and obligations may be different to your friends who live in accommodation that is not associated with the institution.
With both private and university accommodation, you can seek advice on your rights as a tenant before signing up.
Do not accept on face value information from providers of accommodation that you do not have legal protections under the Residential Tenancies Act 2010 (NSW) (Residential Tenancies Act)– seek advice from your local tenants’ advice service (see Useful Contacts) .
University-owned accommodation
More and more universities are offering accommodation that is owned and operated by the university.
This is usually self-catered furnished accommodation, often with a shared bathroom, living room, kitchen and laundry.
You may be required to vacate the accommodation during university holidays and many of these accommodation arrangements are subject to different laws than normal tenancies.
Residential college
If it is your first time living away from home or if you move to another city, living in a residential college offers great opportunities to make friends and live close to campus.
Most residential colleges are full-board, meaning that it includes meals and other services such as a cleaning service for the common areas.
Some residential colleges also offer additional support for young people living away from home for the first time, including academic and pastoral support.
Living in a residential college requires you to respect the values and principles of the college.
For example, you might be required to attend certain sporting, social and cultural events or follow certain rules about having guests over or keeping food in your room.
While living in a residential college offers many advantages for young people, it can be more costly than living in a share house.
In addition, most residential colleges require you to move out during the university break, which can be inconvenient if you plan to stay over the holidays.
If you are considering residential college as an option, speak to a current resident to get an idea of what it’s like and apply early to avoid disappointment, as places fill quickly.
Homestays
Some vacancies may be advertised as ‘homestay’, which may include meals and pick-up services.
For some international students, this may be an opportunity to stay with a family, improve their English and learn more about Australia.
However, homestays can be costly and living with a host family could mean that you don’t have as much freedom – for example, the host family may have set mealtimes or curfews.
It is also worth noting that that young people living in a “homestay” situation are not likely to be covered by the Residential Tenancies Act.
This will give the host a lot more freedom, and a young person may have very few rights in terms of rent increases, termination and many other things.