Harveys Dunedin principal officer Bruce Robinson made the suggestion yesterday after the Dunedin City Council on Monday voted to back plans for a new star-rating system for student flats.
Mr Robinson told the Otago Daily Times he supported the initiative, with some reservations, but also wanted to see a similar system for tenants.
"We all know that there are innumerable examples of tenants, both students and others, destroying properties.
"Homes and flats that would be a four- or five-star rating can, regrettably, be changed to one or two stars in months with the wrong tenant selection," he said.
His company had "a few hundred" properties for rent, of which only a small proportion were let to students, but damage was common.
"You get damage reasonably regularly, and it's stupid damage, a lot of it careless stuff," he said.
The company either sought costs from the tenants involved or passed the bills to owners, but a rating system for tenants "would have to be of some benefit", he said.
Several websites offered national tenant and landlord checks, including a joint initiative by the Ministry of Justice and the Department of Building and Housing to publish Tenancy Tribunal decisions.
However, a Real Estate Institute of New Zealand national database of tenants also caused controversy in 2006.
Mr Robinson's suggestion won conditional support from Otago Polytechnic Students Association services officer Mark Baxter yesterday.
Only a small minority of students were problematic tenants, but he would have "no problem" with the worst offenders being listed in some way, provided the process was "fair".
"If there are people who are that bad in a flat, I would personally have no trouble with them being noted as someone to be watched."
Otago University Students Association president Edwin Darlow declined to comment yesterday.
The star-rating system for student flats also won "support in principle" yesterday from one of the largest companies dealing with students.
However, Edinburgh Realty property management divisional manager Veronica Scott - whose company managed about 350 student flats - said it was "abundantly clear" students seeking flats "have a rating system of their own already".
She believed the new system could prompt absentee landlords to invest in their properties, but government initiatives on insulation might also encourage budget-restricted student property owners to improve their properties.
Many students were already "more discerning" and asking more questions about flats before signing, while others would "sacrifice heating and decor in order to reside in the party zone", she said.
