No sign of that deposit? Landlords seen to ‘target’ third-level students

Aug 2, 2016

It’s no secret that that the renting situation in Ireland – and most specifically Dublin – is a total nightmare right now, but most of us like to think that once we finally secure a place, we’re away in a hack.

Unfortunately, however, that hasn’t been the case for a staggering 60 percent of renters in Ireland.

According to a survey conducted by the Union of Students in Ireland in association with Red C, more than half of tenants surveyed claimed they experienced difficulties when seeking the return of their deposit from respective landlords.

And, unfortunately for third-level students, it appears they are easy targets for landlords who have failed to register with the Private Residential Tenancies Board.

While acknowledging that this isn’t the case across the board, President of the Union of Students of Ireland Annie Hoey did highlight the various way landlords have attempted to manipulate the system.

“I think we find sometimes unscrupulous landlords who don't register with the PRTB, that target students and then … say oh this is broken or did you not know there was a cleaning charge,” she explained.

“Very often students are transient groups and they don't have time to be staying around, waiting for this deposit to be returned, as they go off to work, on J1's.”

Commenting on the results of the survey, Fintan McNamara of the Residential Landlords Association has condemned the behaviour of a small number of landlords, but fears the results of the survey will see the introduction of a ‘custodial deposit scheme’ where a deposit is paid to an independent body.

Insisting that these schemes have failed when implemented in the UK, Mr. McNamara has instead argued for the imposition of fines for landlords found to be withholding deposits.

Rosanna, SoSueMe and Holly… the AFFORDABLE outlet the stars love

Nov 18, 2015

by Amber Saunders

We’ve actually just about given up on our teenage dreams of looking like a real celebrity.

Sure we do a mean liquid-liner-strong-brow combo and yup,we’ve been known to rock some pretty on fleek, red carpet worthy looks.

But we’ve now old and wise enough to come to the conclusion that constantly sporting SnapChat-ready hair, make-up and accessories (we salute you, famous folk) is just too overwhelming for normal beings.

Still, we’re not ones to pass on the opportunity to occasionally go serious Kardashian-Jenner glam for a really special event – and that’s where Starla dresses comes in.

Located on Dublin’s South William Street, but with a great website for anyone based outside the capital, the outlet is basically the go-to place for the likes of Rosanna Davison, Holly Carpenter, Suzanne Jackson, Nicola Hughes, Hazel O’Sullivan, Vogue Williams and Lynn Kelly.

And let’s face it: those lovely ladies go to A LOT of fancy-pants social events.

@lynnkelly_ looking stunning in her Starla LBD

A photo posted by Starla (@starladresses) on Oct 26, 2015 at 10:33am PDT

Starla hires out designer dresses from just €80 – think the head-turning Sierra dress, or the sexy All Saints gold eagle number, the latter of which has been seen on Rosanna. Or alternatively, borrow a serious statement number from Alex Perry for €200 or less – he’s the Aussie designer that’s hugely popular with the likes of Sandra Bullock, Giuliana Rancic, and Ariel Winter. We furthermore got more than a little excited when we spotted fabulouso frocks to purchase from just €65. And *whisper it* Starla on occasion sells off former rental stock (which is always in perfect condition) for a fraction of the original price: at the moment we have one very keen eye on this stunning hand-painted Holt Miami dress. Kim Kardashian loves the label, and while it would have been (gulp) more than €1,000 to buy, it is now on sale for just €180… #swoon. For those that don’t do dresses – the store and website both have a brilliant selection of accessories and fur for sale: think bags, bangles and rings, not to mention [pictured above] amazing €30 bobble hats that have just arrived in for winter. Here, with a debs/wedding/ball/graduation spring in our step, SHEmazing! has rounded up the very best that Starla currently has to offer…

Picked up this fab hot pink lil number from @StarlaDresses last week

Posted by Hazel O’Sullivan on Tuesday, 13 October 2015

Karis bandage dress in dusty pink, €115 [to buy]

Rachel Gilbert Rosie gown in yellow, €185 [to hire]
Long navy gown, €480 [to buy]
George Cara gown in blue, €160 [to hire]

Wilde Willow dress in fuschia pink, €130 [for sale]

Chantel gown, €220 [to buy]
Juliet gown in red, €195 [to hire]
Sweet Sensation Gown in blue, €120 [to buy]

Jessica dress, €110 [to buy]

Rabbit poncho in black, €70, with gold belt, €25 [both for sale]

Fergie gown in white, €180 [to hire]
Pink Farrah dress, €100 [to buy]
Navy Badgley Mischka gown, €180 [to hire]

To check out the full range, visit the Starla website here.

Rent the chic abode once owned by Eddie Irvine… for €8.5K a month

Lifestyle

Sep 23, 2015

by Amber Saunders

Oh if only the walls could talk! Yes, we reckon that playboy Eddie Irvine’s former abode might have a few tales to tell.

And while a swish property the retired F1 driver once called home hasn’t actually been in his possession for more than a decade, to this day it still retains bags of millionaire star quality.

The Dalkey residence is located on the seaside suburb’s upmarket Sorrento Road, surely one of the country’s most prestigious addresses: familiar faces in the locale include the likes of Bono.

Purchasing the then-more modest property from developer Harry Crosbie back in the early Nineties, Mr Irvine snapped up the deeds for just €230,000.

Expanded by architect Joe Kennedy and now totaling some 500sq metres, the four-storey house is perched on hillside grounds.

Although the stand-out features are numerous (you know yourself; cinema room and master bedroom with views over over Killiney Bay to Bray Head), the highlight is undoubtedly a six-metre indoor plunge pool which is linked via a glass tunnel to a 23-metre outdoor pool. Swoon.

Eddie, now a successful property investor with dozens of dwellings around the world, did well from the eventual sale too: he moved-in in 1993 just as his Formula One career was taking off. But in 2004 he packed-up and sold it on to businessman Dave Cullen for a cool €5m.

It’s changed hands again since then and a year ago it was available to rent for €7,500-a-month… today you’ll need to fork out €1,000 more.

Still – we’re sorely tempted to put in an offer (sure we are). Here, SHEmazing! takes a look around…

Another lap for Eddie Irvine’s €4m playhouse
Eddie Irvine’s €4m playhouse is back on the market, Madeleine Lyons takes a closer look. Video: Daniel O'Connor

A total of 35 lucky LYIT students are about to land some SWEET rooms

Aug 26, 2015

by Amber Saunders

A hotel that has spent much of the last five years closed and disused is on the verge of reopening – as slick student accommodation.

Amid economic uncertainty and recession, the Gleneany House in Letterkenny closed its doors in 2011 – however its proximity to the Letterkenny Institute Of Technology has now given it a second lease of life.

Indeed, it has already been overhauled and spruced up, resulting in 24 en-suite rooms which each come with Wi-Fi, a dishwasher and microwaves.

There’s also free parking, a student lounge, launderette and 24-hour security. Additionally, a former hotel restaurant will shortly re-open to provide meals once term kicks-off again in a couple of weeks.

The local estate agent, Manus McGroddy, told the Irish Independent that the rooms offer “Carlsberg accommodation at Ryanair prices”.

“We have put a lot of work into it,” he added. “There is a definite shortage of student housing in Letterkenny and this will help to fill the gap.”

Mr McGroddy said more than half the rooms in the town centre building have already been snapped up.

“The hotel was lying empty. A lot of money has been invested in it and it now ticks all the boxes for students coming to Donegal.”

With room for 35 occupants, single rooms start at €60 a week, while doubles for students willing to share cost €80 – or €40 each.

With most extras included in the weekly rent, the only additional bill will be electricity.

Think your rent is expensive? This is what €900 gets you in NYC

Lifestyle

Aug 21, 2015

by Amber Saunders

If you reckon your rent in Dublin or Cork is bad, chill for a second because this guy renting in New York might just have it worse.

As you can imagine, rent in the Big Apple is extremely pricey, especially if you want to be anywhere near Manhattan i.e. less than a ferry and two trains away.

But this apartment on the Upper West side just takes the p*ss altogether. It certainly has a great location as it's only around the corner from the iconic Lincoln Centre, but what you gain in location, you REALLY lose in space. The apartment was widely ridiculed when it was put up for rent earlier this year, but it seems one renter didn't mind moving in.

Grayson Altenberg, a Wisconsin native, recently took up residence in this tiny studio apartment and is paying a huge €900 a month (or $1,100).

The "apartment," which is basically just a bedroom, consists of a bed, a shower, sink and toilet and a tiny area for preparing food. This place doesn't even have a window, but the new tenant doesn't seem to mind.

Grayson is a chef at the Lincoln Centre and says he is willing to sacrifice space and comfort for the sake of a much shorter commute.

"I don't need a living room, I don't intend on spending that much time at home. My living room is Central Park," he told the Village Voice.

As a chef, he does admit to missing his big kitchen he had at home, but it seems he's adjusting to living without some things… "like a chair." Righto.

The tiny room has what is basically just a hole in the wall for the bathroom and he has a rack hanging from the shower for hanging his clothes.

Could you live here if it meant being in the heart of NYC? We're not so sure we could..

Married Dublin couple forced to sleep in their car

Lifestyle

Nov 24, 2014

by Amber Saunders

A couple from Jobstown in Dublin have been forced to sleep in their car for the past three weeks after their rent was increased by a massive fifty per cent.

Shane and Ciara Dwyer had been renting through an estate agent who hiked their rent from €700 a month to €1,050, which they said that just couldn’t afford.

As Ciara suffers from panic attack brought on from agoraphobia, she cannot work and her husband has essentially become her full-time carer. Because of this, the safe environment of a home is important for Ciara’s health. She has said the situation has made her: “embarrassed, depressed and just scared.”

The couple have been on the housing list since 2008, however, even this paired with a letter from the HSE in relation to Ciara’s metal health and the benefits of long-term accommodation could not help their situation: “They said there was nothing they could do until the day we became homeless. So we went down then and they said there wasn’t any emergency accommodation for couples, that there were six couples in front of us … We go down to the council every day asking them if there’s anything. They just keep saying there’s six couples ahead of us. One guy, when he heard we were sleeping in our car, said, ‘At least you’re in out of the rain.’”

For now, the couple say they are staying in their car as they cannot risk staying with family who will be in breach of their council home contracts if they overcrowd: “They have kids. They can’t risk being put homeless too,” Ciara says.

At night, Shane says they keep milk under the car to keep in cold, having a quick breakfast in the car every morning before heading off to a drop-in centre of family to wash and clean their clothes. From there, they head down to the council to see of anything is available for them yet.

Want to live like Kirsten Dunst? It’ll cost you….

Lifestyle

Sep 15, 2014

by Amber Saunders

We’ve always loved Kirsten Dunst’s style, and it turns out it’s not just her wardrobe that oozes vintage class and elegance. Her home does too, and it’s up for rent! At a whopping $12,500 a month….

That studio flat in Ranelagh isn’t looking so extravagant now, is it?!

If you were lucky enough to be able to afford to have Kirsten as your landlord, you’d find yourself with a view of the Hudson River, a large library and sitting room, a brand new kitchen and a master suite. Oh, and your neighbours would be Casey Affleck and director Gus Van Sant. Sound good?

You can rent the apartment furnished with Kirsten's vintage furniture, or you can have her stuff removed. After forking out for the first month's rent, we think we'd be holding onto the furniture!

Kirsten spent $3.09 million on the place back in 2007, as she wanted a break from Los Angeles after a stint in rehab. We don’t know why she’s putting it up for rent seven years later, but what we do know is that whoever gets it is one lucky tenant!

All the things you need to rent in Dublin!

Lifestyle

Aug 20, 2014

by Amber Saunders

After hearing about how rents across Dublin have risen by 26% since 2011, and how students are finding it increasingly difficult to find somewhere to live, this comic by Twisted Doodle detailing everything you need to rent in Dublin is VERY well timed!

Finding somewhere to live, or someone to live with is difficult at the best of times. Especially when you’ve grown up watching Monica and Rachel in their big huge apartment – the realisation that your whole flat will be about the size of Rachel’s room is quite a bitter pill to swallow. Why must they make it even more difficult?!