Student survey to rate landlords

The Undergraduate Assembly poll is the first landlord study in years. In its first major project of the year, the Undergraduate Assembly recently launched a survey asking students to evaluate their landlords as part of a larger guide to off-campus living. The UA's West Philadelphia Committee worked with other student organizations to create a landlord guide to fill what they perceived as a lack of information available to students thinking about living off campus. Mike Silver, co-chairperson of the West Philadelphia Committee, explained that the survey is important because students don't readily understand the "nuances of negotiating leases, subletting and dealing with unresponsive landlords." "The University spends a lot of money on on-campus living, and it's not that they don't care about people off-campus, [but] it just doesn't seem like a priority," the College junior added. The questionnaire asks students to rate their landlords on issues such as the condition of their apartment or house, lighting, trash and neighborhood safety. Until 1993, the student-run Penn Consumer Board published an annual survey of area landlords. The survey was widely used by students who would call the Office of Off-Campus Living to access information about renting off-campus, according to Silver. But the following year, the PCB failed to publish a survey, leading the OCL to take over the project in 1995. Now, however, both OCL Director Mihaela Farcas and Silver hope the UA subcommittee will spawn an independent student group to be modeled after the PCB. "I am very much in favor of this very important document for students as I am involved in off-campus living, but students must take full responsibility for it," Farcas said. "Students should be the voice of students because they are the ones choosing housing." The comprehensive guide will consist of a main section featuring landlord information and results of the UA survey, as well as six subsections. The other components of the guide include information about students' rights in a dispute, information about trash, recycling and safety, move-in and move-out procedures, tips for first-time renters, city contact information and a section dealing with community relations and resources. Silver said he hopes the guide will be ready for release in January. Although the UA and OCL have not yet determined how they will fund the entire landlord guide, the UA unanimously approved spending $1,748 to cover the cost of the survey itself. Silver said that he plans to request funding from the University for the rest of the guide but noted that he is not optimistic because "they don't want to get involved in the legal aspects" of rating --Eand possibly criticizing -- area landlords. "Either way, we are going to get the money," Silver stressed. "We've got a lot of momentum with this project, and we're going to find a way to fund it." Hard copies of the survey are available at the OCL office, Civic House, the Office of the Vice Provost for University Life and Cafe Trio. Tables will also be set up at 1920 Dining Commons Monday and Tuesday during lunch and dinner and at Chats nightly from 10 p.m. to midnight for the next week. Students who complete the survey are automatically entered in a raffle to win a portable CD player. The survey has also been available on-line at http://dolphin.upenn.edu/ ~consumer/survey98 since November 11. Students have until Thanksgiving to complete the questionnaire.

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