Sydney landlords exploit foreign students

International students in Sydney are falling victim to financial exploitation by dodgy landlords who are overcharging on bonds, suddenly increasing rents and refusing to maintain legal paperwork, a new report shows.

A University of NSW Human Rights Clinic report, 'No Place Like Home', found a lack of student housing and a tight market allow landlords to exploit a lack of knowledge of legal rights.

"Many international students pay money up front to unverified landlords they find online," Maria Nawaz, lecturer and clinical supervisor at the clinic, said in a statement.

"When they arrive in Sydney and housing turns out to be much worse than advertised or other things go wrong, they're often not legally protected as tenants and face barriers to getting help."

The clinic identified a range of problems, including landlords demanding a larger bond or more rent in advance than the law allows, or imposing sudden rent increases or exorbitant charges for basic utilities.

The report draws on the responses of focus groups with international students at multiple universities across Sydney, interviews with legal service providers and university housing advisors and analysis of data from the Kingsford Legal Centre UNSW between October 2017 and April 2018.