Assistance
Strangers in a strange land
When I heard the news that I had been awarded a government scholarship to embark on a PhD at Monash I was very excited. Just think – when I complete the degree I will be the first women in my country to have a PhD in my field! My husband was enthusiastic and supportive that I take this opportunity, but the scholarship living allowance was only for a single person. However we decided that with our savings, and my husband playing “Mr Mum”, we could keep our family together.
How hectic was our arrival. Our first week was spent in ‘emergency accommodation’ at a nearby motel - my faculty had kindly covered some of the cost. However, at around $90 a night we could not stay long – finding a home was vital. Of course there were other ‘vital’ things to organise - bank accounts and atm cards, health insurance, on top of starting my work.
Arriving late in semester, we discovered that the off campus ‘student friendly’ accommodation around Clayton had already been snapped up. There is no on-campus accommodation for students with families. By word of mouth we heard of a woman who was subletting rooms in her apartment. In desperation we took this even though it was not suitable. My family were to ‘live’ in the lounge room of a 2 bedroom apartment, shared with three others.
We knew our life would be intolerable when the ‘landlord’ gave us ‘the rules’. “The baby must be asleep by 6pm” she said. Then came “no talking with your husband, you will keep the baby awake”. What were we meant to do in the evening? Even cooking was a problem. I would be preparing our meal when the ‘landlord’ would enter the kitchen to cook herself, moving all my stuff aside. For this we had paid $600 bond* plus $600 rent in advance.
Three days into our tenancy the ‘landlord’ told us to move out. I tried the rental search engines of the two main papers but many places were already let when we rang. Of those we applied for, we were continually rejected. When eventually I gathered the courage to ask, I was told it was because we had no history of renting in Australia and weren’t employed. They didn’t understand about postgraduate students.
Finally I contacted Residential Services and Kristine was most helpful, but here I admit we did not tell her the full story of our situation. Each day she would send me options for accommodation to search for, but with no internet access at home, often I was late to receive the email and the property was gone.
The search was made more difficult by the practice of taking a key deposit, and only allowing 15 minutes (or sometimes half an hour) to view the premises. This is impossible when you are using public transport. With the high prices we also looked at one bedroom and studio apartments but were rejected as we had a baby*.
Finally we were offered a place at 4.25pm on a Friday afternoon. The agent gave us half an hour to get to her office with the money. We were in panic stations. How to get there in that time? I rang my husband who ran to catch a bus. He arrived fifteen minutes late but fortunately managed to secure the apartment.
We were required to sign a condition report* and the agent will only give us a 6 month lease due to our ‘lack of history’, but we have space to be a family.
So we have a home now, but the rent is $932 per month and I must also buy a travel card which costs $68 per month – all this neatly eats up our entire living allowance of $1000 per month. We have our savings yes, but now in order to live my husband needs a job – and what sort of work can he find?
I tell this story to you now so that others may learn from our experiences. When you arrive in a country for the first time there is just so much information to absorb that it is impossible to take it all in. It is hard to discover for yourself where help is available – this needs to be acknowledged. Finally my advice to you is to not be shy about getting help, and to be open with those who would advocate for you. You are a stranger in a strange land.
*NB: Regarding bonds, it is illegal to pay bond money to an individual, any bond money should be paid to the Rental Bond Board. It is also illegal to discriminate against people with children. Finally, always check the condition report thoroughly and make written comment if there is any discrepancy between the stated condition and the actual condition as you perceive it.
For information about off-campus accommodation visit off campus info. For advice and advocacy visit tenancy advice.
