With the start of the new academic year, thousands of students are expected to return to the Jacaranda City. With this comes a demand for cheap accommodation in the Hatfield area and experts warn of scammers taking advantage of students by conning them into paying deposits in private rental adverts.
Karien Pauw of Aida Letting deals specifically with student accommodation and told Rekord that the number of scams involving student accommodation were increasing. “It’s very important for prospective students to make sure they meet the person who is advertising the accommodation at the specified address. They should not pay any money, though, as scammers put pressure on them to secure an alleged deposit.” She warned that prospective renters should use a reputable letting agent. “It is important to use a letting company rather than deal with a personal advert on the internet, especially for those students who live outside of Pretoria.”
Meanwhile, the Brooklyn police have issued a statement cautioning parents and students who use online or newspaper rental searches to find private accommodation, to be vigilant. “Students must, wherever possible, make use of the tertiary institution’s official accredited rental agent for private accommodation or use registered renting agents. Extra care should be taken when a renting option is offered by a private individual,” said the Brooklyn police spokesperson, Captain Colette Weilbach.
However, according to Nicolize Mulder of the University of Pretoria, all resident accommodation is already full to capacity. “We only have 8 000 beds to offer to students in our different residences. But we do use a waiting list to accommodate more students as space becomes available throughout the year,” she told Rekord.
