Victoria University housing web page provides a broad range of information and options including university accommodation UniLodge VU and off-campus accommodation.

The Student Housing Guide produced by Student Support provides practical housing information and work pages to assist students when looking at properties.

You can obtain more information on the housing webpage.    Speak to a Student Advisor at VUHQ for more information.

Web: www.vu.edu.au/housing

Email: housing@vu.edu.au

Phone: 03 9919 6100

Consumer Affairs Victoria (CAV) is responsible for the administration of the Residential Tenancies Act.

You can obtain copies of Renting a Home: A Guide for Tenants or Rooming Houses: A guide for Residents and other relevant information and forms from Consumer Affairs Victoria - www.consumer.vic.gov.au or phone 1300 558181 or call into their office at 113 Exhibition Street, Melbourne.

CAV publications are also available in many other languages.

Tenants Victoria (TV) also provide basic information and advice to tenants. The TV web page has an excellent range tenancy issue sheets and step by step guides in a broad range of languages. www.tuv.org.au or get phone advice 9.00am to 4.00pm Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday 1.00pm to 8.00pm Wednesday on (03) 9416 2577
(Closed on public holidays)

Rent Assistance - Students receiving a Commonwealth Support benefit or pension and living away from home and paying rent may be eligible for Rent Assistance - contact Centrelink for more information. www.centrelink.gov.au

Bond Loan Scheme - Australian resident students on low income may be eligible for a Bond Loan for a rental property, co-tenancy in a rental property or as a resident in a rooming house. Students living in University operated accommodation are not eligible for a Bond Loan but may be eligible for a VU Student Loan. Contact Dept of Human Services to apply. www.housing.vic.gov.au/bond-loan-scheme

Health Care Card Concession - Australian resident students receiving NO or low income are eligible for a Low Income Health Care Card which will provide a range of discount concessions including gas, electricity and water. For more information go to: http://www.humanservices.gov.au/customer/enablers/...

Scholarships - the university has a range of scholarships to assist Higher Education and TAFE students with their living and education costs. See Scholarships web page for more information at www.vu.edu.au/scholarships

Centrelink Relocation Scholarship - are available for dependent students who need to live away from their family home located in a regional or remote area to study and are receiving full or part Youth Allowance or Abstudy, studying fulltime in approved scholarship course. For more information and full criteria go to: https://www.humanservices.gov.au/customer/enablers...

Centrelink Advance Payment - Students receiving a Commonwealth pension and some benefits are eligible to apply for a cash advance which could be used for housing costs. Contract Centrelink for more details. www.centrelink.gov.au

Student Loan - up to $500 interest free is available as a last resource. Strict conditions apply. Make an appointment to see a Senior Advisor-Welfare on 9919 6100.

Housing Establishment Funds (HEF) - is a Victorian Government initiative that aims to address and prevent homelessness by providing financial assistance to individuals and families (Australian Residents) who are homeless or in housing crisis. Funds may be provided for rent in advance (private rental) or rent in arrrears (private rental) or emergency housing. An eligibility criteria applies. For further information about HEF phone 1800 825 955.

Emergency relief for International students - emergency assistance and funds may be available from Study Melbourne Centre, 599 Little Bourke Street, Melbourne. Phone 1800 056 449

Utility Relief Grant Scheme - available to eligible domestic customers experiencing unexpected hardship that you cannot pay your utility bills and are at risk of disconnection or non-supply. Application forms are available from your gas, electricity or water companies.

Insurance - Provides students on low incomes affordable household contents, car or home insurance. The Good Shepherd has negotiated affordable premiums with low excess and flexible payment options specifically for people on low incomes. Customers can also choose to pay premiums annually, monthly or fortnightly instalments and use Centrepay (Centrelink’s payment program) to manage payments. For more information on Good Insurance(external link)

Nothing - the Student Housing service may refer to you as either a landlord or provider.

You can be one of any type of landlord or provider - a landlord with an investment property managing it yourself or you may have an Agent, you may be a VU student renting a property and looking for a housemate or you may own or rent your home and want to find someone to share it with.

A Rooming House is a building in which one or more rooms are used by four or more people who are on an individual agreement (written or oral)and paying individual rent for a room (or shared room) in that building.

Rooming Houses must be registered with the Local Government authority and meet health, building and safety regulations. Rooming Housing Operators must be a 'fit and proper person' within the meaning of the Rooming House Operators Act 2016 and be licensed.

Rooming Houses must have amenities which meet prescribed standards under the Residential Tenancies (Rooming House Standards) Regulations 2012

The premises must be administered and residents afforded their rights and obligations under the Residential Tenancies Act 1997.

For more information regarding Registration of a Rooming Housing, contact the Local Government authority where the building is located.

Consumer Affairs Victoria conduct training sessions for Rooming House operators and copies of prescribed forms and guides.

You should familiarise yourself with your duties and obligations as a landlord under the Residential Tenancies Act .

Consumer Affairs Victoria run training sessions for landlords, rooming house operators and those providing student accommodation.

For more information about training see the Consumer Affairs web page at www.consumer.vic.gov.au or phone 1300 558 181

The peak times are the months leading up to the commencement of the academic year - January, February and into mid March and for the mid year intake in June and July and there is always students looking to change their housing at any given time.

Apprentices attending their block release training will require accommodation for one to three weeks several times per year.

The student housing database operates as a listing agent. Landlords can list their accommodation offer at no cost.

Offers of accommodation must with relevant statutory acts and regulations including the Equal Opportunity Act.

Students looking for housing can access the database for free to search for suitable accommodation.

VU staff do not inspect properties or recommend one provider over another.

The Housing Officer does not match or place students with offers of accommodation.

Students must contact the providers and all negotiations are between the student and the provider.

Share House for singles and couples or with children - room with use of household facilities

Rooming Houses (where four or more individuals rent room or share a room) and share the common facilities

Vacant properties to rent - houses, flats, units, self-contained bungalows and apartments

Commercially operated Student Apartments and Hostels - furnished apartments & serviced hostels

University accommodation - furnished room or apartment, facilities, pastoral care and academic support.

For rental properties you can charge Market Value (or less).  Contact the Real Estate Institute of Victoria for further information. www.reiv.com.au

Room rental charges will depend on the type of household.  In a rental property, the share would be a portion of the total rent plus a share of the household utilities.

In a private home, it is more difficult to determine.  You may enquire what you home would rent for, divide this amount by the total number of bedrooms to achieve a room rate and add additional amounts for provision of furniture and other services.  Utilities may be included in the rent or on agreed share basis.

When setting your rent bear in mind that most students are on limited income and international students do not receive concessions for public transport travel etc - so if you rent is excessively high you will receive fewer enquiries.

If you charge a Bond, you must complete a Bond Lodgement Form and lodge it with the Residential Tenancies Bond Authority within 10 working days of receiving the bond. You must also provide the tenant a Condition Report on the state of the property or the room they are renting.

Rental properties - a maximum equal to one month rent

Residents on a Rooming House Agreement  - a maximum equal to two weeks rent.

Tenants, co-tenants and sub-tenants on fixed term leases - a maximum equal to portion of one month rent

You'll need to register as a provider first. It should only take you a minute or two.
Once you've done that, just click "Add a listing" and fill out the form. Add photographs. You have the opportunity to review the information before you submit. You will be notified by email once your listing has been processed by the database administrator.

As you are already registered simply log in. On your dashboard, click Add a listing, complete the details. An email will be sent to you once this listing has been processed by the database administrator.

1. Locate the listing to be reactivated from your dashboard.
2.Click on the 'relist' link.
3.Click on 'available from' box and enter the date the property is available from.
4.Select the 'preview' box and make any changes that you want.
5.Select the 'OK, submit this listing' button.
6. You will receive an email once the database administrator has processed your listing.

Homestay provides a cultural exchange between the student and a local family or individual (called a Host). 

The student lives as a guest in the host’s home

Living in a supportive family environment, the student is provided with a clean furnished room (this includes items like a bed, desk, wardrobe, chair and a study lamp) access to bathroom and laundry facilities and meal services. Utilities (electricity, gas and water etc.) are also included. The minimum stay is 4 weeks.

Hosts offer ongoing support and can show the student around the local area including local facilities such as  banks, post office, shops, public transport.

Victoria University’s preferred homestay provider is Australian Homestay Network (AHN). To find out more please refer to www.homestaynetwork.org/VU-students or www.homestaynetwork.org/VU-agents or phone +61 3 9435 6621 or 1300 MY STAY.

Victoria University has campuses throughout the Melbourne central business district and western suburbs and our students look for housing all over Melbourne - depending on their needs.

Our campuses are located at:

• Footscray Park
• Footscray Nicholson St
• St Albans
• Sunshine
• City Flinders St & Flinders Lane
• City King St
• City Queen St
• Werribee

Log in, go to your Dashboard on tool bar at top right of your screen. Click on your current listing , when open, click on Make Changes button on right side of screen. Make your changes then click Save Changes at bottom of listing. A review pages will come up and if satisfied hit Submit Changes. The Administrator will review your changes to ensure appropriate and an email will be sent to confirm it has been processed.

You can down load the prescribed leases, condition report forms and other resources from the Consumer Affairs Victoria web site at www.consumer.vic.gov.au

Or you can visit or contact them for hard copies of the forms together with Renting: A Guide for Tenants

Consumer Affairs Victoria, 113 Exhibition Street, Melbourne Phone: 1 300 51 81 81

For providers of accommodation within your own home, we recommend you have a written board agreement to discuss with your student to ensure there are no misunderstandings about payment of rent, house rules for example or you can establish a prescribed lease where you will be the landlord and the student a tenant under the Residential Tenancies Act.

Student Housing

VICTORIA UNIVERSITY
Ph: 03 9919 6100
Email: housing@vu.edu.au