Mac isn't doing enough to hold landlords accountable

Last April, my housemates and I backed out of a potentially exploitative and disastrous lease. We have the tenants at the time to thank for reaching out to inform us of their landlord’s undeniably shady behaviour. Many students aren’t so lucky.

On Sept. 6, a story was shared on Spotted at Mac about a landlord who took two months of rent but never responded when the student wanted to move in. More students commented about their own experiences with this particular landlord, urging others to avoid renting from them.

This landlord is only one of many who will manipulate and deceive students to rent their rooms. The students are then stuck in a twelve or, if they’re lucky, eight-month long contract. Some rooms and houses don’t meet the safety standards, or aren’t up to code by Ontario rental guidelines, but are being rented out anyway due to a lack of resources, education and better options.

When the time comes to rent a place near campus, students find themselves too overwhelmed by the process of house-hunting, and lacking guidance, they often make uninformed decisions. Houses go quickly and potential landlords warn that they have another group interested in the house so they better act fast.

While some find the ads on Kijiji and Craigslist, others take the more cautious route of looking at McMaster’s Off Campus Resource page. Unfortunately, it does not appear as though the university takes any steps to regulate and verify the ads posted on their page, or the contracts that the landlord will ask the university’s students to sign.

It is the university’s responsibility, in some capacity, to regulate the landlords who are renting to students, especially in the vicinity of campus. Living situations for students who rent are of paramount importance to their health, both physical and mental, as well as their success in school.

Although the Off-Campus Resource Centre exists, and I would recommend that anyone who has renting troubles visit them for advice, it is not enough. The university allows landlords to place room ads on their website, giving these landlords the privilege of the legitimacy that comes from being connected to the McMaster website. If landlords benefit from this relationship, it should also come with greater responsibility and stricter rules.

In addition to asking more from the landlords, the Off-Campus Resource Centre should also focus on outreaching to students, educating them on the specifics of renting, the illegalities that often sneak their way into year-long contracts, and the dangers of many potential residences that are being rented out.

Ultimately, McMaster has a responsibility to its students to ensure that things it affiliates itself with are safe and legal. Although students can post their renting horror stories on social media and hope it reaches their peers, it is not our sole responsibility to make sure we’re not exploited and manipulated by landlords.

Whether you just moved on, have been living in your house for a while, or are still looking for a place to call your own for the next few years, don’t forget that your safety and health comes first. Landlords aren’t allowed to bully you into accepting lesser conditions, and while pursuing legal action can be a hassle, it helps you and future tenants create better conditions for McMaster students.