A recent survey of letting agents and landlords by the Tenancy Deposit Scheme (TDS) has revealed the most popular cause of deposit disputes when renting to students.

The TDS poll discovered common disagreements, the top causes of dispute, and whether their experiences have encouraged or deterred them from renting to students in the future.

The poll highlighted that a large percentage of landlords and agents have had to raise a deposit deduction, with 88% confirming they have raised a deduction at end of tenancy.

For those who had made a deposit deduction, the common issues were 48% claimed for damage to property, 36% made a claim for cleaning, almost one in 10 – 9% – deducted for redecoration, while 7% experienced rent arrears.

Despite the high percentage of deposit deductions, 60% of all respondents believed that in general, students took good care of their rental property, a common worry when deciding to rent to students.

Of those polled who did not rent to students, the reasons why they were deterred included ‘too much potential damage, could cause a problem with neighbours’ and ‘prefer more reliable, professionals in my property’

‘Constant redecorating’ and ‘tend to be unclean and irresponsible, too many late-night parties and elements of anti-social behaviour’ were also highlighted a primary reasons.

The results show that the common concerns about renting to students are valid to some extent, with cleaning topping the deposit deduction claims. However, there were no antisocial reasons for disputes, no issues with neighbours, and redecoration claims were in a small percentage.

Positively, the poll observed that over three-quarters of landlords and agents perform mid-tenancy inspections. TDS encourages property professionals to conduct regular inspections and include them within your tenancy agreement.

Similarly, over half of agents and landlords polled confirmed that they attended the check-in/check-out with the tenants present.  TDS advises that detailed inventories and check-in/check-out reports are vital to managing the property, navigating a successful end of tenancy and avoid the chance of deposit disputes.

Finally, the poll revealed that 86% of agents and landlords surveyed will continue to let to students in the future. With over 2.6 million students in higher education across the UK, there is no question that the student housing market is still a great opportunity within the PRS.