We, the undersigned, are residents of Unilodge and ask the Management Team to immediately:

1.     Reduce our occupancy fees proportionately in light of the reduced services

2.     Provide adequate hand sanitiser, soap, toilet roll, kitchen roll and towels in communal spaces

3.     Allows Unilodge residents to terminate their residential agreement early without incurring any (implicit or explicit) financial penalty

 

1.   Reduction in Occupancy Fees

As a premium student accommodation, Unilodge is chosen by prospective students for the kind of services it can provide, including the use of common areas and terraces. Therefore, Unilodge has a duty of care to provide customers with these services. If these services are retracted, regardless of the reason(s), it fundamentally alters the nature of the product Unilodge residents purchased. As a result, we demand that Unilodge adjusts the occupancy fees according to the recent changes made in the provision of the communal services.

The rent amount specified in our respective lease agreements is contingent on the services provided. This is evidenced both by the differential rental amounts for ensuite rooms with attached bathrooms being higher than single dormitory rooms, as well as the Unilodge Lincoln House website specifying the range of communal areas available for use to the residents. Clause 5 (c) of the Licence to Occupy [‘Lease’] states Residents ‘shall have the right to use the Services’. Furthermore, Clause 2 (c) of the Lease obligates the Owner [Unilodge] to provide the Residents with such services as long as the Resident does not violate their other obligations.

The Unilodge Royal Melbourne website and the residential agreement promise residents services including (A) accommodation, (B) open lounges, (C) breakouts spaces on every floor, (D) lobby lounge, (E) televisions, (F) videogames, (G) Netflix and other platforms access, (H) communal kitchen, (I) dining areas, (J) laundry room, (K) outdoor courtyard, (L) rooftop terrace, (LL) BBQ’s, (M) full equipped gym, (N) study rooms on every floor, (O) Community Spirit Program, (P) events, and (Q) media room. However, residents are currently only receiving services (A), (J) and (O) because of the unilateral restrictions imposed by Unilodge without consulting the residents.

In light of this shutdown, we ask Unilodge to clarify the break-up of our respective rent amounts per service provided, including the amount that was being paid for the usage of communal areas. Furthermore, we demand that the amount allocated for the usage of the Gym, Lounges, Terraces, Study Rooms, Game Rooms and other communal areas which have been shut be waived immediately given that the Residents have no longer access to these services.

While we understand this measure has been taken as a safety precaution to prevent the spread of COVID-19 caused by the coronavirus, the shutting down of these areas has a significant impact on our experience as residents. Unilodge is obligated to provide and maintain the condition of these services by cleaning the requisite spaces frequently enough to make sure they are safe for common usage, regardless of the circumstances.

 

2.   Safety Concerns

 

We demand that Unilodge provide the bare necessities required to combat COVID-19 including soap dispenser(s) and toilet roll(s) in each communal washroom on each floor in Unilodge Lincoln House. Furthermore, Unilodge must provide more clothing towels in the communal kitchen, which must be regularly replaced, at least two to three times a day to maintain minimum standards of hygiene. This would involve immediately replacing the existing set of clothing towels. Moreover, Unilodge must provide adequate paper towels in the communal kitchen to reduce the risk of residents touching the same towels and therefore risking the spread of the virus. Furthermore, the shutting down of these shared spaces has resulted in the common kitchen being extremely cramped. As a result, it is nearly impossible for residents to follow the safety protocols issued by the Australian Government and the World Health Organisation to maintain social distancing. The lockdown measures implemented by Unilodge could be rendered futile if Unilodge does not adopt these relatively small and doable precautions.  

We are disappointed that even though the State of Victoria declared a State-wide emergency on 16 March 2020, Unilodge has not facilitated access to medical services to people who may be sick. Though we appreciate the email updates on methods of using the lifts and dining tables, we request Unilodge to provide avenues for treatment and isolation of those feeling sick.  

 

3.   Early Termination of Residential Agreement

 

We would like to stress that this pandemic has had a disproportionate impact on young university students like the residents of Unilodge who are trying to balance their studies with making the ends meet:

(A) Most of the students’ courses have either been cancelled, postponed by a semester or virtualised. This means that students may have to pay for an unanticipated extra semester. (B) Several international students were effectively forced to return to their home countries because of family concerns and lack of health coverage benefits in Australia. (C) Students and their family members have been severely impacted by the economic slowdown often losing their sources of income. (D) Residents are forced to invest in setting up a workstation in their studio apartments/rooms because access to all university workspaces has been shut down.  (E) Food expenses have risen exponentially because students are limited to local supermarkets and nearby shops which are running low on supplies given the panic buying. (F) And none of the tangible circumstances highlighted above capture the intangible consequences on the mental health of students such as rise in anxiety, depression, etc due to self-isolation and economic precarity.  

In light of the particularly harsh impact of these unprecedented circumstances on the residents of Unilodge, many of whom are international students, Unilodge must allow residents to terminate their lease agreement without incurring any financial penalty or forfeiting their security deposit. Unilodge claims that it is a socially responsible corporation which ‘cares for those in their trust’. We believe such care and empathy for the circumstances of the student residents must lead to a recognition of the right of residents to terminate their lease agreements due to the global pandemic.