Many international students at Ohio State are aware that they may face linguistic and cultural barriers, but may not be prepared for another problem: exploitation by landlords.
The Student Housing Legal Clinic is investigating several landlords who target international students in particular.
The investigation focused this fall on landlords who are taking advantage of international students by failing to maintain property and not only charging higher security deposits, but refusing to refund those deposits.
The SHLC has been working to remedy the problem by communicating with individual landlords and their attorneys. “If these efforts to informally remedy the situation fail, we plan to file a lawsuit,” said Katherine Wise, director of the Student Housing Legal Clinic.
“We are also working with the Ohio Civil Rights Commission to identify potential problem landlords, and possibly enlist the use of testers to determine if discriminatory practices are occurring,” Wise said. “We have been primarily contacted by Asian students who are encountering the most difficulties with their landlords.”
Most international students leave the country at the end of their lease and do not have enough time to secure deposits or report unfit landlords, therefore some cases go unnoticed. In order to reach more international students, Wise said the SHLC has been working with a variety of international student groups this year. They have also participated in orientation programs for international students in an attempt to educate them about their rights and responsibilities as tenants.
The SHLC works with the larger university to provide translation services for most languages to assist with reading leases and describing housing issues. The SHLC also conducts English as a second language classes on housing topics.
“The most common problems facing international students are high security deposits, additional advance rent; property conditions are poor, and requests for repairs may be ignored,” Wise said. Perhaps the worst example is Muslim tenants encountering harassment by landlords since Sept. 11.
The names of landlords were unavailable. Wise said there have not been any lawsuits filed yet, however, one particular landlord has until Jan. 15 to remedy a condition or go to court.
“The Student Housing Legal Clinic and the Ohio Civil Rights Commission are working to resolve these problems to keep international students from being targeted in the future,” Wise said.
The SHLC’s mission is to inform students of their rights and responsibilities regarding landlord/tenant issues. Wise said the SHLC assists to about 2,000 students and give attention to about 500 cases a year. “We have been successful. We have recovered more than $100,000 for students,” Wise said.
There is no charge for SHLC services for OSU students enrolled full-time or part-time. The SHLC is located in the Ohio Union, room 345. Students can call the SHLC office at 247-5853 to set up an appointment. Students can visit the Web site at www.osu.edu/units/law/housingclinic. No legal advice is given over the phone.
