Q. Why does the Students’ Union accredit landlords?
A. The Students’ Union is committed to working with private accommodation providers to ensure the best possible standards of housing are available to all students studying at Teesside University. As there is currently no accreditation body operating in the Teesside area we have worked over the last year to develop our own standard which local landlords and letting agents have been invited to apply to be a part of.
Q. How does it all work?
A. Once an accommodation provider has applied to be part of the scheme, we ask to see a copy of their tenancy agreement, and evidence that they are a member of a reputable deposit scheme. We will at this point liaise with a landlord if any changes are required. Once we are happy with the tenancy we would randomly select some properties from their portfolio we would like to view. As well as viewing the properties we would need to see all current safety certificates associated with them.
Q. If a landlord or letting agency is accredited by you, does it mean you have seen all their properties?
A. No. We view a minimum of 10% of the properties out of the portfolio provided. If you wish to know exactly which properties we have seen you can contact us through tusuaccreditation@tees-su.org.uk. Please note we will only give this information out if it comes from a Teesside University student email account.
Q Once a landlord or letting agency is on your scheme are they on it forever?
A. No. The will have to re-apply every year and go through exactly the same process.
Q. What if I have a problem with a landlord in your accreditation scheme.
A. If you have any problems with a landlord we would advise you make an appointment with one of our Student Support Advisers at SU Student Support (SUSS). The fact that we have worked with these landlords means that we have good working relationships with them. Being part of the scheme means that they have to adhere to an agreement made with the Students’ Union. If a landlord is in breach of their agreement this may result in their withdrawal from the scheme.
Q. What do the landlords get from being accredited?
A. Only landlords that are accredited through the scheme can work with the Students’ Union. This includes attending the housing fayre, advertising, appearing on house match, and sponsoring our clubs and societies. Basically, if you see them anywhere around the SU or on official SU material you can be sure that they are a member of our accreditation scheme.
Q. Are some of the accredited landlords better than others?
A. We are not in a position to say! However, we can say with certainty that they have all met the standard that we laid out within our accreditation scheme.
Q What is the standard that you are asking them to adhere to?
A. If you would like a copy of the TUSU accreditation scheme standards please email: tusuaccreditation@tees-su.org.uk
For a full list of accredited landlords for the 2018/19 academic year please click here. If you are looking for new accommodation look out for the TUSU Accreditation logo!
