The national housing charity Threshold is urging students to reach out if they come across a suspicious advert as they look for a home for the upcoming academic year.
More than 250,000 students are expected to return to college this year, with in excess of 100,000 of them using the private rental market.
Threshold has partnered with the Irish Council for International Students (ICOS) and the Union of Students Ireland (USI) as part of its annual “Scamwatch” campaign to raise awareness around elaborate frauds.
The joint 2024 campaign is calling on students to carry out thorough checks before paying deposits for private rental accommodation.
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The campaign comes amid growing warnings of scams issued by gardaí.
[ Twelve cases of accommodation fraud reported to gardaí in JulyOpens in new window ]
“We continue to see students come to us with queries relating to scams,” Threshold’s campaigns officer Cat Clark said, adding the charity’s advisers have managed to prevent a number of clients getting caught up in scams, saving them significant financial loss.
The charity offers “a number of tips that can help students and other prospective renters avoid scams, but the general rule of thumb is that if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is”.
Laura Harmon, executive director of the ICOS, said the organisation is regularly contacted by international students seeking information and advice. In many of these cases, English is not their first language.
“Due to this language barrier, our research has found that more than one in four international students use group chats and social media pages to find accommodation, where scams are particularly prevalent, and as a result, [they] are more likely to fall victim to an accommodation scam,” she said.
An ICOS survey with 819 participants late last year found 13 per cent of them had been the victim of an accommodation scam, but only 11 per cent had reported the crimes to authorities.
“We would urge students who are coming to Ireland for the first time to contact Threshold for support if they are unsure about a property,” Ms Harmon said.
Anyone struggling with a potential scam should contact Threshold via their website, webchat, or freephone on 1800 454 454.
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