Accommodation
Living in Australia
Living CostsSydney, Melbourne and Canberra offers a range of accommodation options for international students including: hostels, serviced apartments, furnished or unfurnished houses or flats/apartments. International students often organize temporary accommodation for their arrival and then find rental accommodation in a share house or independently.
Generally, accommodation becomes more expensive the closer it is to the CBD. You would therefore need to consider the combined cost of rent and transport when choosing accommodation. Also keep in mind, that the majority of rental accommodation close to the CBD is apartments and flats. Houses for rent are more common in the inner suburbs.
See more information about student living costs in the following links:
- www.immi.gov.au/students/_pdf/student-living-costs.pdf
- studyinaustralia.gov.au/Sia/en/Studycosts/LivingCosts
If you have an offer to study games and film at AIE or are a current student and would like assistance finding accomodation, please complete an accomodation request.
Accommodation Advice
For a detailed guide to renting accommodation in Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra: www.realestate.com.au Click on Rental Properties, and then click on Rental Information.
Below is a rough guide to obtaining accommodation in Australia :
| Bond | 1 month's rent for rental properties |
| Rent in Advance | Up to 4 weeks for rental properties |
| Other Costs | Removal costs, furniture and equipment purchase, electricity and telephone connection fees |
Utilities (Gas, Electricity & Water)
Costs
Budget approximately
$20 per week in a shared household or $25 per week if living
on your own. Allow more in winter, especially if heating
is electric.
Insurance
Regardless of what type of accommodation you take,
the contents of your room should be covered by your own Home
Contents Insurance Policy.
Leases or Agreements
You should always have either a written
lease or occupancy agreement which states any or all of the
following:
- commencement date of occupation
- rent payable and how often
- what is included in the rent (services and utilities)
- what facilities you can use and house rules or tenancy regulations to observe
- what period of advanced notice required to vacate the premises
You should also conduct a written Condition Report of your room or property upon moving in, and maintain a copy of the Report in the event there is a dispute concerning damage or cleanliness upon you vacating.
Bond, Rent Payment Receipts & Documentation
If
you are required to pay a bond, you and the landlord (or
agent) must complete a Bond Lodgement Form and the bond must
be paid to the Residential Tenancies Bond Authority. You
should keep a copy of this form together with all receipts
for payment of monies for rent, your share of utilities and
other documentation in a personal file to support your case
in the event of a dispute.
Tenancies Disputes
For further details
regarding Tenant and Landlord Rights and Obligations, refer
to the following websites:
Sydneywww.fairtrading.nsw.gov.au/Tenants_and_home_owners/Renting_a_home.html
Melbourne
www.tuv.org.au
Canberra
http://users.bigpond.net.au/TU/contact.html
www.canberraconnect.act.gov.au/housing/lessorandtenant
Accommodation in Melbourne
Short-Term Rental Accommodation
www.bcl.com.au/melbourne/accom.htm
www.totaltravel.com.au/travel/vic/melbournearea/directory/hostels
Rental Accommodation in Melbourne
www.2share.com.au
www.domain.com.au
http://melbourneexchange.com.au
www.bcl.com.au/melbourne/accom.htm
www.realestate.com.au
Melbourne Tourism
To find out what’s happening in Melbourne and for any
upcoming events, visit:
www.visitmelbourne.com.au
http://melbourne.ecityguide.com.au
www.bcl.com.au/melbourne
Public Transport in Melbourne
www.railpage.org.au/railmaps/melbourn.htm
www.metlinkmelbourne.com.au
Accommodation in Canberra
Homestay
Homestay accommodation provides students with an excellent
opportunity to experience life with an Australian family.
Being a multicultural country, the Homestay hosts may have
been born in another country; however, they have embraced
Australia as their home and speak only English in the household.
Homestay hosts and students taking the Homestay option are strongly encouraged to abide by the Code of Ethics and Good Conduct Guidelines for Homestay Programs as outlined by the International Student Adviser’s Network of Australia (ISANA). Please click here for a copy of the guidelines. Alternatively, refer to the ISANA website: www.isana.org.au (click on Interest Groups, and again on Homestay)
Homestay Cost
Homestay fee is paid directly to the hosts,
and will usually cover:
• Three meals a day, seven days a week;
• Provision of facilities such as bed sheets, blankets
and towels;
• Utilities such as gas, water and electricity;
• General cleaning of the student’s room.
Students are responsible for paying for the cost of their phone calls.
Short-Term Accommodation
Below is a list of recommended hostels/hotels close to AIE
Canberra. These places are ideal for short-term
accommodation only. Please call or visit their web sites for further
information. You will need to book your accommodation before
you arrive to make sure they have a room for you. The Hostels
are located within 5 kilometres from AIE Canberra campus.
Canberra City YHA
7 Akuna Street, Canberra City 2601
Phone: +61 2 6248 9155
Fax: +61 2 6249 1731
Email: canberracity@yhansw.org.au
Website: www.yha.com.au/hostels/details.cfm?hostelid=240
Reception Hours: 24 hrs
City Walk Hotel
Cnr City Walk & Mort Street, Civic
Phone: +61 2 6257 0124
Phone: (Freecall within Australia) 1800 600 124
Email: reception@citywalkhotel.com.au
Website: www.citywalkhotel.com.au/
Rental Accommodation in the ACT
www.allhomes.com.au
http://canberraexchange.com.au
www.realestate.com.au
http://accom.anu.edu.au/UAS/187.html
Canberra Tourism
To find out what’s happening in Canberra and for any
upcoming events, visit:
www.canberratourism.com.au
www.canberra.citysearch.com.au
www.visitcanberra.com.au
www.bcl.com.au/canberra
Public Transport in Canberra
www.action.act.gov.au/
Need help finding accomodation? Request AIE accomodation services here.
