Cardiff is home to over 40,000 students, across three main universities, all of whom are looking for a place to live, in the hope they can make their student house a home. Yet, the process of adding that personal touch, and settling into a base that remains a reliable constant each and every day can be disrupted by a number of issues, especially as students, who tend to look at rental prices in the lower end of the market.
New research by Save the Student revealed the most common issues students face when renting private accommodation at university. From mouldy walls to rodent infestations, student houses across the UK appear to be plagued with some seriously unsavoury issues.
30% of students cited experiencing problems with damp and mould, 25% noted a lack of water or heating, as well as 20% confessing to have issues with rodents or pests. Almost half of students in the survey said they experienced more than one issue with their house.
30% of students cited experiencing problems with damp and mould
These problems align with a continued rise in rental costs. In Cardiff, according to Uni Homes the average student accommodation is £197.94 per person. This has seen a staggering surge in recent years with a huge 106% increase in student rent prices in the Welsh Capital from 2020 to 2026. As rents continue to rise, so does the frustration of students who feel like the whole process and their living standards are unfair.
One graduate renter in Cardiff noted “many students are not aware of their renting rights, and they take advantage of this due to the rush of trying to find somewhere to live before the next academic year”
“We have had 4 gas leaks and multiple violations of both rentsmart guidelines and the gas safe registry rules, currently in touch with lawyers after going through the gas registry and citizens advice.”
Another renter noted their battle with “constant black mould”, that was impossible to get rid of, and of “frequent rat visits” dealt with bags of poison and nothing more.
Rats can spread an array of diseases and bacterial infections, even without direct transmission. They also reproduce very fast and can overwhelm a building in just a few months.
A Student living in Cathays noted their experience living with the presence of mould in their bedroom, a place where they should feel at their most safe and comfortable.
“We noticed the mould when properly moving in in September time, and this is my bedroom! it was a real shock and has caused a lot of issues for me personally as someone with asthma. it’s sad this is the reality for a lot of student housing- it shouldn’t be acceptable.”
People living with mould are more likely to suffer from respiratory illnesses, infections, allergies or asthma. Those who already experience respiratory issues, have their chances of asthma attacks, coughing and breathlessness increased significantly.
Black mould even caused the tragic death of Awaab Ishak, a two-year-old from Rochdale, who died as a result of a severe respiratory condition caused by prolonged exposure to black mould. The student continued, noting the difficulty of combating mould: “Mostly I have been using mould spray and a dehumidifier to prevent this situation but that becomes expensive! Unfortunately, I just have to minimise its impact on my health.”
“I have contacted the landlords and they did get someone to check it and fix an external issue but unfortunately that hasn’t erased the problem so it continues to be an issue - hopefully before new tenants arrive this will be fixed so they also won’t have to deal with what I have.”
Fighting back against mould has become the norm for Cardiff students. As another student, Charlotte, suggests: “I think all students have to deal with it at some point, and it is so hard to eliminate it”
“Often I think the only solution is to repaint with anti-mould paint, but landlords aren’t willing to spend that money, and the blame is placed on the tenants for not staying on top of it.”
Evidently then, students and landlords are locked in a blame game cycle, in which landlords are submitting students to fix their own problems, especially when housing is in such high demand anyway.
Students and landlords are locked in a blame game cycle
Charlotte does note however that Cardiff Student Letting are “good and accessible for students to sort their issues”, and that their maintenance man is always “friendly and quick to respond” to any problems.
It does appear that some student houses in Cardiff do not live up to the prices that are being paid, and students and their experience with housing is a repeating spiral of let-downs. A student in Cathays showcases the state his house was in when he arrived for the first time back in September. Broken drawers, stained walls, peeling wallpaper and dirty ovens are not exactly the housewarming gifts one would write home about. An expectation upon students to ‘just get on with it’ has become normalised to a worrying degree to the point it is affecting both physical and mental health of those at the university. It appears that if rent is going to rise at the continued rate, then so should the housing standards that come along with it.
For now it persists as just another issue for students to bear, placed upon them by the powers above them.