Student Guidelines

Welcome to Australia and to Homestay Direct. Homestay Direct Thanks you to select our service.

We provide the information to assist you in the best way we can you’re your transition to this wonderful country and homestay.

Remember: there is no ”Right“ or ”Wrong“ just different. Upon your arrival everything you see and experience will be very different from your home country.

At first it may be difficult for you to adapt to your new home as you will be tired after your flight and you may feel a little homesick. Please try to rest and enjoy your new and wonderful experience.

HOMESTAY DIRECT is a service organisation, which provides accommodation options for international and local students.

HOMESTAY DIRECT provides the following services:

Homestay accommodation for International Students
As a source of information regarding cultural differences between other countries and Australia
Assistance as an impartial judicator in disputes between the host and the student
Student counseling facilities
Intership opportunities(Work Experience for Students)

Perfect way to help your English
Understand Australian culture under the roof of a safe environment and help you overcome culture shock
Make Australian friends for ever, with homestay family and students from other countries
Economic way to settle down

To settle down in a foreign environment quickly

Homestay Hosts have been interviewed by Homestay Direct and have the following morals,

Have a friendly personality and are flexible
have acceptable moral and social values
Have some experience with people from different cultures
Are located near public transport
Provide clean and tidy accommodation
Have police checks. A homestay host which hosts underage students, will have approval of a Working with Children Check (WWC)

We charge $210 for placement. Please see our payment website for your payment.

While you make booking, we ask you to pay our placement fee and initial fee for 4 weeks homestay in advance. See accommodation payment chart below.

International/local bank transaction
Credit Card: Visa & Master
Cash payment by visiting our office

With Meals

Two meals per day from $200.00- $240.00 per week or $800.00 - $960.00 monthly

This Includes

Fully furnished bedroom, includes a study desk a chair and lamp. All gas, electricity and water services are supplied to the student at no extra cost (rules apply) Bed linen, towels, toilet paper and soap are to be supplied by the host family. You must supply your own shampoo, conditioner and personal toiletries. Laundry facilities are made available by homestay host.

Rooms for students do not need to be lockable. Living in a homestay is a matter of trust. It is your responsibility to keep your room clean and tidy.

Your bedroom is your own private area; you have the right to ask anyone to leave your room

No Meals

No meals from $160.00- $200.00 per week or $640.00 - $800.00 monthly

This Includes

Students are to have access to kitchen facilities but must keep ketch clean after use.

Rooms for students do not need to be lockable. Living in a homestay is a matter of trust. It is your responsibility to keep your room clean and tidy.

Your bedroom is your own private area; you have the right to ask anyone to leave your room.

In cases, students have pre-paid four weeks accommodation fees to us in advance; we will pay your host. If your host asks you for this payment, please tell them you paid to us. After this payment, if you stay longer and you pay your host directly, please ask a receipt for your payment. If you hope we provide continue service for you after 4 weeks, please pay to our company. Please contact us for this payment.

If you intend to go home for school holidays or the Christmas break and hope to keep your room, you are required to pay $80.00 per week. Your belongings will be kept.

Homestay host is to provide to you (2) meals per day – breakfast & dinner

Breakfast – self serve - prepared by you, a choice of cereal, toast, condiments, egg, milk, coffee or noodles to be supplied or discuss with your homestay host,

Lunch – self serve on weekends only.

Dinner - your homestay host will provide a cooked meal. Please discuss with your homestay host the food you like but should be reasonable and acceptable by host. You should inform your host if you will be not home or will be late for dinner, this is considered well mannered.

Please discuss and ensure your homestay host takes you food shopping, allowing you to make some choices of food preferences.

A member of the host family will stay home for your arrival. Please inform us your arrival time. However, sometimes there are major problems with flight delays or cancellations.

It is your responsibility to inform us this important change as soon as possible.

Your homestay host will travel with you to your school on the first day; show you how to buy a ticket and how to go to your school by public transport. Please write down which train/tram/bus you take and which stop or station you get on/off. Carry with you your homestay address and your homestay host’s telephone number.

Be aware in Australia international students must buy full fare tickets. It is your responsibility to make sure what kind of tickets you should buy but you can ask help from your homestay. The following is the website for transport in main cities. We suggest you read before you buy ticket.

Melbourne: www.metlinkmelbourne.com.au

Sydney: www.atn.com.au/naw/syd/trans-c.htm

Brisbane: www.ourbrisbane.com/transport/ticketing

Adelaide: www.adelaidemetro.com.au

Perth: www.pta.wa.gov.au

Please ask permission from your homestay host to use phone and internet and confirm the fee you should pay.

We suggest you record every call you make, pay your host after some time or pay separately once you use. Or purchase a prepaid Telephone Card for all international and STD calls.

While you use phone, please think about others in the home. Don’t speak loudly and too long, usually don’t use phone after 10 PM except there is urgent issues.

If Internet use is available, you must pay for this service at a rate negotiated by both you and your host family. We recommended at least $35 to $40 per month dependent on your Internet usage.

Please aware that there is internet usage limitation in Australia and exceeded usage will be fined, which is different from many countries. Please check with your host family about their download facility; as extra costs may incur if download has exceeded Internet limits,especially download movies.

Australia is experiencing one of the most serious droughts in history and you should be aware of your usage of water in your homestay home. The Government has applied to each city very strict water restrictions and laws apply in all states of Australia. Please discuss this important matter with your host family, as showers are time limited to approximately 3 minutes. You should never leave taps running or wastewater in your homestay home.

The average student resides in their bedroom from 6am- 8am and 5pm-11pm (8 hours per day). Heating is expected at these times with no additional charge to the student.

Additional charges may apply to supplementary heating beyond the average hours ask us for our Heating Information Sheet’ if you need further information.

Students should not smoke in homestay home except if homestay host gives you permission.

Although it is safe in homestay but we suggest you buy private insurance coverage for your precious personal belongings. Eg: laptop, mobile phone and I pod’s.

Many Australian families have either a cat or a dog or both, which sometimes live inside the home. Pets are not a threat to the students and are usually very well controlled and trained. If you are unhappy with a pet in home or enter your room, please tell your host.

There is not a minimum period that you must stay after initial booking of 4 weeks. We encourage you to talk to host if you hope to stay longer. We recommend that you give your homestay host as much notice as possible preferably 1 week before you leave.

Most complications occur due to a break down in communication so it is important to establish a rapport as soon as possible with your homestay. More communication helps more understanding. If you think your homestay did not do what your expected, please discuss with homestay and try to understand each other. If you cannot understand what your homestay told you, please ask them to repeat to you understand or ask for a written message. If you cannot agree with each other, just try to discuss and understand each other first. If you couldn’t solve the proble, please call us for help.

If you are unhappy with your homestay family, please always try to communicate first. Most problems can be solved after good communication.

If you cannot solve the problem after communication, please let us know. If you have reasonable reason to leave your homestay family, we will change you to a new homestay host as soon as possible without charges.

We try our best to put you into a homestay and make your stay as comfortable as possible, but;

Some times we cannot satisfy all your requirements, for example, internet, staying with/without students from another country while in busy time.
When you arrive, homestay should wait at home. But most of homestay families work during the week, if your flight is delayed too long, the hosts have to go to work, maybe you have to stay at another place to wait your host pick up you after work.
Some homestay conditions changed but they didn’t inform us, there may be some differences from the profile you had at hand, for example they got students from other resources, bought a pet etc.
We place student in a homestay close to public transport and in the same zone with their schools. But Melbourne is too spread out, students may catch two transports to school or it takes half an hour to one hour to school. This is reasonable.
Homestay family will try to provide healthy and nourishing food for you, but as different cooking style, maybe the taste you don’t like. Please try to get use to different food.
Respect your host’s life style and rules. Even if you hope to change a homestay, please speak out your real reason and don’t make story to hurt your present homestay.
Try to talk more with your host but if they are busy or unhappy to talk some times, please understand.
Even if you have reasonable reasons to change a homestay family, please understand we need time to look for a suitable one for you.
However kind your host is, please don’t invite your friends to your homestay often, without permission, don’t bring a friend to your homestay.
Australia is migration multicultural country. The citizens are from different countries and backgrounds with different accent.
Usually fruit and snacks are your own responsibility.
Although you paid for your stay, help your homestay to do some house work and show your thanks for your homestay’s work for you. It will be very helpful for your relationship.

It is our honor to have your feedback about our service and homestay. Your comments, opinion and advice are warmly welcome and highly appreciate. Your feedback will help us and homestay hosts to provide better and better service for you and your friends.

Please email us or call us or visit our website www.homestaydirect.com.au.

Thanks!

If at the weekend you require our services please leave a message on the following numbers:

03 96703133 or 0414 418 377

Tell your Family & Friends

Please tell you family and friends all about us, we will be delighted to hear from them.

Homestay Direct does not warrant or assume any legal liability or responsibility for any damages or loss of income incurred by either the Homestay Host or the student residing in your home.