"Student homes used to be associated with poor quality, but today’s undergraduates are demanding more, particularly as individual landlords are often competing against private institutional providers."
Over three quarters (78%) of undergraduates responding to a survey carried out on behalf of Paragon Bank felt that the overall quality of their student lodgings was between ‘good’ and ‘excellent’.
Its location satisfied the highest proportion of students - 84% rating it as ‘good to excellent’ - with bed and room sizes closely following, with 83% and 82% of students rating them between good and excellent, respectively.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the current economic climate, affordable rent is the most important feature of rented accommodation, ranked as the number one priority for more than four in 10 (42%) undergraduates.
The next most important features of term-time accommodation are good Wi-Fi and proximity to their university site, both chosen by just over a quarter (27%) of students.
Other characteristics that students look for include room size, chosen by a quarter, inclusion of bills in rent, a consideration for 18%, and proximity to public transport links, which 15% of respondents feel is a desirable feature.
Paragon also sought to find out students’ view of landlords. Over half (54%) responded positively in total, with 38% viewing landlords positively and 16% very positively.
Indifference was seen in just over one in five (21%) students, with survey respondents indicating that their view of landlords who let to students was neither positive nor negative.
Richard Rowntree, mortgages managing director for Paragon Bank, said: “HESA data shows the UK student numbers have consistently grown since the 1990s and that privately rented homes have long been undergraduates’ preferred choice of accommodation.
“Student homes used to be associated with poor quality, but today’s undergraduates are demanding more, particularly as individual landlords are often competing against private institutional providers. Nearly eight in 10 students view the standard of their accommodation positively and landlords are taking extra steps to attract students, such as installing good quality furnishings, en-suites and strong Wi-Fi.
“It is encouraging to see that students view landlords positively overall. The high levels of satisfaction in the homes provided by landlords letting to students will be a significant factor in this.”
