Early in August the residents of Aurora, the new residential tower block managed by Vestide, raised joint protests against the fact that they had to pay for washing and drying. Many of them think that these costs should come under the service charges. For the tenants of the space cabins, some one hundred of whom have moved to Aurora, the use of washing machines and dryers always used to be free. That is why many of them assumed that this would also be the case in their new accommodation. Some claim that they were informed accordingly. However, Vestide charges three euros for washing and two for drying. Also, the residents have misgivings about the question whether five washing machines and three dryers will be enough for more than three hundred potential users.

For that matter, as early as in May Cursor featured an on-line article reporting the fact that washing and drying would be charged for separately. Even then there were doubts about the number of machines. It is typical of the problem of the residents of the tower block. They are all new and often do not know each other yet. This makes it difficult to join forces in order to enter into a dialog with the housing organization.

Vestide puts up two student managers in Aurora to tackle problems

Vestide has tackled this problem by putting up two student managers in Aurora. Maria Scholten, a third-year student of Psychology and Technology, is one of them and she thinks that this has proved to be an excellent solution. “With their contract all the residents were given a letter, in which I and my fellow-manager Jeffrey Schijns were presented along with our photos. Residents know where to find us and put questions to us every day. It also happens that somebody’s bike breaks down. Then I can lend them mine as long as necessary. Every day I try to get acquainted with residents I have not spoken to earlier yet. What works best, though, is our Facebook group. It’s really working smoothly and at present 220 residents have joined in. Before long we are going to sit round the table with nine residents and somebody from Vestide to see how we shall furnish the common room in Aurora.” Vestide pays Scholten and Schijns a remuneration for volunteers. Scholten spends about five hours a week on her management duties and in principle the position is for an indefinite period of time.

Vestide has meanwhile promised to monitor the power consumption of the machines in September and October. In addition, it will be checked how often they are used. The residents will be given insight into the actual costs of water and electricity for those months. On the basis of the findings a real price will be determined for washing and drying and until November the residents will not be charged for this. Vestide will also take the request from residents to be allowed to use their own detergents into consideration. So far they had to use the detergent that was automatically added by the washing machine.

Other complaints concerned the heat in the washing facility, the absence of bicycle racks for visitors and ashtrays to put out cigarettes. In the units where four people share the kitchen and the bathroom, the refrigerators were found to be too small. Vestide promises to try and find solutions as soon as possible. Whether the TV connection for which a monthly charge of 13 euros must be paid now will also become optional is another thing that Vestide will look into.

At Luna a temporary discount action is the bone of contention

At Luna, the tower block that was born within less than a year from the building formerly occupied by Electrical Engineering and that is managed by Camelot, a temporary discount action is the bone of contention. Kevin Steijn, a third-year student of Computer Science, who has profited from the discount himself as well, has put himself forward as spokesman for complaining residents.

At the beginning of September an officer from Camelot told Cursor that her company had temporarily reduced the rent by two hundred euros so as to get the tower block still as fully occupied as possible. According to Steijn especially international students who had registered for rooms in Luna at a very early stage, feel disadvantaged by this. “Understandable, for they now have to pay two hundred euros more for the same room per month for a whole year.”

A student’s mother who has to pay the full rent reacted furiously online when she got wind of the discount action. She calls it incomprehensible and says that this way the vulnerable position of foreign students who have to look for suitable accommodation in a foreign country is taken advantage of. She adds that in her contacts with Camelot she was given the impression that she had to be quick in deciding whether or not she was going to take the room. Otherwise it could be gone. That extra costs were charged subsequently for the management of the common areas and for washing and drying was the limit for her. She claims that the site of Camelot said that the costs for washing (four euros) and drying (two euros) would be inclusive. Disappointed she concludes by stating that she had expected that the offer of accommodation on the TU/e campus would not be all about making money.

Steijn by now has met more residents who are angry about the discount action and will soon start a petition so as to be able to discuss this issue with Camelot. The 9 euros per month that must be paid for the management of the common areas, and paid washing and drying are also a thorn in his side, which goes for more residents. “Those costs are supplementary to the 99 euros of service charges that we pay. If you do the washing once a week, it implies that will cost you another 24 euros a month as well. They may seem like small amounts, but if you add them all up it comes to a sizeable sum altogether.”

Camelot is not going to reverse the high rents

Bob de Vilder, marketing manager at Camelot, can easily imagine the disappointment among the residents who pay the full price, but indicates that his company was suddenly faced with a stark choice when it turned out by the middle of July that TU/e would only need 70 of the 270 rooms that had been reserved. “TU/e was contractually bound first to refer foreign students to Aurora, the residential tower block of Vestide. Apparently fewer foreign students have come to Eindhoven this year than expected and as a result we threatened to face considerable vacancy levels in Luna. We thought that would do nobody any good, which is why we decided to offer the rooms for 400 euros instead of the customary 600 euros. This made the rooms affordable for Dutch first- and second-year students, who are now lucky in being able to pay a lower rent for six months. After that period they will have to leave. This was a one-off discount action which will definitely not be repeated in the future.”

Camelot is not going to reverse the high rents, says De Vilder. “These rents are in line with the market and you could compare it with the price for a seat on an airplane: if you want to make sure of your seat at an early stage, you will pay more than in case of a last-minute booking.” The general costs for the maintenance of the common areas and the obligation to pay for washing and drying he also regards as normal additional charges. “It is impossible that our site should have said that washing and drying would be inclusive, because we don’t do so either in the other accommodations that we manage. I do find it odd, by the way, that students seem to expect that washing and drying is free of charge, for it is not free either when you rent a room elsewhere. Then you also have to pay for a washing machine, or you take your washing to the laundry. Which is considerably more expensive than what we charge.”

Luna, too, has a point of contact for complaints in the tower block, De Vilder informs us. “We have a concierge, who is present some four hours every day, and residents can also use their own codes to log in on MyCastle. That is our internal system where all complaints can be submitted. It works fine.”

STU on the contract with Camelot

Patrick Groothuis, Director of the Education and Student Service Center (STU), says that TU/e has concluded a contract with Camelot, as well as with Vestide, regarding the construction of the student tower blocks and that the contract includes agreements regarding the type of tenants for whom the rooms are intended. Groothuis: “However, Camelot is a market player that determines its pricing policy itself and concludes tenancy contracts with residents. TU/e does not get involved with the amount of the rents. The university regards the pricing by suppliers such as Camelot and Vestide as part of regular market forces.”

Groothuis adds that TU/e refers the students on to the different market players that rent out rooms to students in Eindhoven, “but TU/e itself does not take up any rooms. The university does always try to make an estimate of the number of international students expected. The residential tower blocks Aurora and Luna are not reserved for international students alone, though. In the end it is the students themselves who determine where they are going to live, on the basis of the supply – type of room, facilities, long or short stay – and the pricing.”

The mother who reacted angrily to the discount action in Luna was referred on to this organization by TU/e at the request of Camelot itself, according to Groothuis. “Of course, this is also a discussion between the lessor and the tenant”, says the STU Director.