Limerick students knocking on doors amid accommodation crisis

AS PRESSURE rises for accommodation ahead of the college year, students are knocking on doors in Limerick in the hope of securing a room.

That’s according to local businessman Colm Moore who has predicted an “Armageddon” scenario where more than 1,000 students will be left without accommodation when term-time begins.

It’s as a result of this, he says, that they are resorting to the measure of arriving weeks ahead, and making door-to-door enquiries with their parents in the hope of securing a roof over their head.

It comes as Limerick’s third level institutions launch a joint effort to persuade homeowners to let out any spare rooms they have.

With college attendance set to be higher than the last two years due to the end of Covid-19 restrictions, a University of Limerick (UL) spokesperson has said demand for accommodation is “at its highest in living memory.”

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Mr Moore, who lives in Ashbrook, believes up to 4,500 new people will descend on Limerick next month, and has collated data from enquiries to his own web site, StandOutRenters, which matches people seeking a room to potential landlords.

“From a number of applicants per room perspective, a decent room in a decent home at a decent rate in Raheen would have 400 to 450, with 180 to 200 for Corbally,” he said, adding in Castletroy, around UL, demand is a lot higher.

He said many landlords have had to turn their phones off due to the sheer volume of calls they are receiving from people interested in taking a room.

“There’s generally about 2,000 people looking [at StandoutRenters] for a room at any one point,” added Mr Moore.

He said students can increase their chances of securing a room if they are prepared to live further afield.

“If a renter is willing to cycle or drive 15 minutes, they might 10x [increase by ten-times] the number of properties they could live in,” he said, outlining areas llike Lisnagry, Ballingarry, Patrickswell and Kildimo, where he added there are many empty rooms.

For the first time, UL has appointed a student accommodation officer in order to assist in identifying off-campus accommodation for its students. A spokesperson asked all students to keep an eye on a dedicated part of its website which also provides this detail.