SYDNEY (AFP) - conditions of slums, owners of overcrowding and uncertain - welcome to the housing of foreign students in the most glamorous city of the Australia.
More than 350 000 foreign students are enrolled in colleges and universities across the country, and many are attracted by the allure of cosmopolitan Sydney.
But the reality difficult to live in one of the major cities of the world, with its spectacular harbour and beaches famous, can be very different expectations.
Cheap accommodation is hard to find and owners of rogue encourage students in their nets with advertisements promising apartments quality centrally located at reasonable prices.
When they occur, housing similar to promises.
"I visited the apartment of two pieces of Haymarket which looked fine in the images," said Alice Lala, a student English student at the University of Sydney.
"The problem was that she was filled with 18 people, most of the students or working-holidays visa." These guys literally slept in boxes, crammed on one above the other. For $ 120 per week, I thought it was a joke. ?
Many students, however, would have little choice but to the rough in overcrowded and precarious of single-family homes, unable to pay anything else.
Find a place to stay in Sydney is difficult, with the traditional influx of newcomers student in February and July triggering an often astronomical increase rent about universities as spikes in demand.
Macquarie University, for example, has more than 12,000 students but less than 2,000 rooms at the University. This is a scenario similar to the University of Sydney, where 10 800 students compete 2 500 beds on campus.
"The main difficulty by all students in Sydney is the lack of affordable housing," said David Burrows, an agent of accommodation at the University of Sydney.
"Most of the students have a budget of approximately $180-200 per week, but the average price for a room near the main campus of the University in the city is $ 220."
At both ends meet, often foreign students must work on several jobs to pay their rent, making ready in convenience stores and night shifts even their bodies for medical research.
"Students are more vulnerable to predators owners," explained a spokesman for the Redfern legal Centre, which provides assistance to students who are victims of exploitation owners.
"Most of the time, they arrange accommodation prior to arrival and because they may struggle with the English that they are not aware of their rights and take everything that is offered."
-Overcrowding - in the heart of central Sydney, 33 floors above Pitt Street fashion, Matt is the search for people to share an tiny apartment he rents for Aus $700 (US$ 757) per week.
During the visit of AFP, he simply moved in and had already found two flatmates, one for the living room in a small space separated by a bulkhead and another for a bed on a closed balcony.
Four bunk beds are always available.
He wants to Aus $135 per week for each bunk, Aus $115 live spot and Aus $150 for the closed balcony room.
In total, he will provide Aus $ 805, which means Matt and his girlfriend can live free of charge, with more than $100 Aus spend your money each week.
Similar situations are frequent, despite the sublease is illegal.
Traditionally, students have found resembling flats slums announced near the universities on the lampposts.
However, the website www.gumtree.com.au has become a just also popular way to find a room or a bed. But while honesty is the standard, scams and predators exist.
"The most common scams occur when students meet false ads, created by people claiming to be owners," said Burrows, the officer of the University of Sydney.
"The student has been scammed and then by sending money to secure a room, without yet having seen available housing."
Sex for rent is another reality, that some students have addressing.
Student art Hannah Tooley posted a gumtree read "wanted" ad: "Four British girls near home of Sydney Uni research."
Within hours, she received a response: Hi, how are you? I was wondering if you all would be interested in 150 dollars an hour each cash in hand, by giving me a full massage with hand relief body? ?
Legal Centre Redfern said that he receives a variety of complaints, although sex for rent was not high on the list.
"The problem is people being stripped of their obligations, said the centre, with the owners sometimes refuse to submit deposits.
"I am certainly took advantage of,", said Brian Dawson, a U.S. student whose owner refuses to return its link 580 $ Aus.
"This is a hard lesson to learn when you are a student and the money is so tight."
To avoid scams, some students spend by real estate agents, when contracts are clear and reliable information.
But the flip side is that officers generally insist on a lease from 6 to 12 months, a requirement which cannot meet some foreign students.
Hostels Backpacker are another option. A bed in a dorm is not always cheaper than a shared apartment, but no link is necessary, and there is no invoice.
However, youth hostels are forbidden by law to take reservations for more than 28 days, which means students have to move from one to another.
The authorities have little power to restrict bad practices in the leasing, according to Council in Sydney.
"Council has very limited powers to investigate the problem and the evidence is difficult to bring together the most our staff of compliance may enter a dwelling house if they have the consent of the owner or occupier," said a spokesman.
This is highlighted by the low number of owners - the courts just 15 between 2008 and 2010, Council figures show.
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