General Developments

I just don't understand how there is so much demand in Cardiff for all this student accomm?...

Roath and Cathays has a lot of HMOs (often low quality) used as student digs in mixed residential areas.

For every tower block that is constructed it shifts demand from these houses with private landlords (who don’t always manage them the best). And frees them up for families/first time buyer etc etc.

Yes serviced apartments in tower block accommodation is often more expensive but having lived in HMO’s with a terrible landlord i’d much rather see housing stock on Cardiff’s Victorian streets returned to family homes who will often (but not always) take better care of the outside areas and properly invest in the 100 year plus old buildings that need constant TLC and are not (in my opinion) best suited for a revolving door of young student renters.

In theory, you would see a reduction in demand for Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs). However, the price of the Purpose Built Student Accommodation (PBSA) is generally much higher than a room in a HMO. Given the difference in price points they aren't competing for the same students. The students who move into a new build PBSA wouldn't have instead lived in a poorly maintained HMO with a terrible slum landlord.

What should happen is developers be encouraged to build as much PBSA as they want - hopefully more than they can fill with high-paying foreign students, and then when they face high vacancy rates they should be denied a change of use. They would then have no option but to reduce rents to complete with HMOs. I don't care if the developers lose their shirts. Combine this with a policy to restrict new HMOs and we might actually see some improvement.

I think most people would agree with you that it's better for students (and young single adults even) to live in PBSA (or co-living space) and for most HMOs to return to single family use or even flats. Trouble is that the Council doesn't actually seem to have a strategy to achieve this. There is no sign of a reduction in HMOs (they are even creeping into areas beyond the traditional student districts) despite a very visible amount of PBSA development over recent years. It's no wonder that even otherwise pro-development people end up rolling their eyes when a new scheme is announced.

I have a terrible blind spot for abbreviations. Could I courteously request people avoid using them too much, or if they have to use the, please provide at least one full explanation? ,

I just about got TLC, but HMO, PBSA?

I have a terrible blind spot for abbreviations. Could I courteously request people avoid using them too much, or if they have to use the, please provide at least one full explanation? ,

I just about got TLC, but HMO, PBSA?

Apologies, although that are commonly used in this forum I should have been clearer:
HMO - House in Multiple Occupation aka "shared house"
PBSA - Purpose Built Student Accommodation aka "student flats"

I was on Fitzalan Place for the first time in while over the weekend. There still isn't any sign of the old Howells building being demolished.

Does anyone have any news?

I was on Fitzalan Place for the first time in while over the weekend. There still isn't any sign of the old Howells building being demolished.

Does anyone have any news?

End of 2022, the developers requested to extend the planning permission for Hallinan's House for a further 5 years. Not a good sign for anything happening soon

I was on Fitzalan Place for the first time in while over the weekend. There still isn't any sign of the old Howells building being demolished.

Does anyone have any news?

End of 2022, the developers requested to extend the planning permission for Hallinan's House for a further 5 years. Not a good sign for anything happening soon

Thanks, I must have totally forgotten about that. It isn't a good sign at all is it.