“I just hated the mess and noise in halls. There is a good chance that my younger sister will come to Glasgow, too, so it makes sense to have a place for us both,” she says.

Hunter is a second-generation beneficiary of a parental purchase: her grandparents funded her father’s first steps on the property ladder. Her extended family helped with funding.

“My main advice would be: don’t limit yourself to estate agents’ windows,” she says. “I walked around collecting details from builders’ boards and contacted them directly. That proactive approach, I am sure, put us in a position to get our discount.”

Stephen O’Neill, of Newton Letting, says his smartest clients are the early-bird investors who set up their children’s accommodation a year ahead of their going to college or university. “They rent out the flat for a year, establishing the principle of a self-funding investment,” he says. “It then reverts to being a rented flat on graduation.”

The days of paying for a four-year course through the capital appreciation of a flat bought in the first or second year are clearly gone, but some, such as Eddie Pepper, a client of Murray Beith Murray, believe that going against the crowd can mean a decent financial reward.

Pepper, a 19-year-old architecture student from Northern Ireland, is looking for a four-bedroom home close to Edinburgh’s art college and universities that he can share with three friends.

“Our course is so long that I’ll almost certainly still be here in seven years,” he says. “Nobody is thinking about capital growth now, but I hope things will have picked up by then. The alternative is paying rent — probably more than £30,000 — over the duration of my course and, obviously, you have nothing to show for spending that money.”

Unlike perhaps 90% of buyers in what is, admittedly, a flat market, Pepper sees the red tape associated with houses in multiple occupation (HMO) as an opportunity rather than a threat. He believes that if you put in the groundwork, there are obvious rewards in terms of quality of life and potential rental returns. And a flat that already complies with the regulations should garner a premium if resold, even though the licence is not transferable and a new owner must reapply for one.

As he narrows his search before the new term begins in September, Pepper has employed the services of an HMO compliance expert. Others, though, such as Alison Loudon, an accountant, say that with organisation, there is no reason why a determined parent landlord cannot bring a large flat up to snuff themselves.

The cost of a mortgage, as well as HMO compliance, means parents must appraise their options unemotionally. However, although larger flats now have less appeal, a select band of intrepid incomers — such as Pepper and Loudon — still believe they can make the sums add up, even when, as in the case of Loudon, the cost of compliance amounted to a bill of £13,200 on top of the purchase price.

With the specified self-shutting fire-doors weighing in at £400-£600 each and smoke alarms in six rooms costing £2,000, creating an HMO-compliant home will be a drain on resources — and time — long before it turns a profit. Loudon believes that work done now will reap dividends over time, as a well maintained flat should not only fare well in the resale market, but will also be respected by happy tenants.

Loudon’s reasons for going into the market were threefold. First, she wanted to make good use of money bequeathed by relatives. Second, she wanted the reassurance of a stable base for her son, Fraser, who is studying economics at Aberdeen University. Lastly, she says, she resents throwing away money in the form of paying rent.

“Homework is the key and it isn’t an endeavour you should enter into lightly,” she says. “We did all the research we could into the viability of particular locations and we were equally thorough when it came to the HMO legislation. We’ve just been through that process and I’d say it is not as daunting as it appears at the outset. We’ve had good, concise instruction from the inspectors throughout and it was just a question of crossing off the to-do list one job at a time.”

However, although Loudon could probably diversify into offering HMO advice to landlords, her approach is not for everybody. Details such as exit routes, fire regulations and insulated electrics required by law for communal tenancies can be daunting.

“Our view is that we’d get out of this what we put in in terms of time, effort and money,” says Loudon. “You can charge a fair rent only if you offer fair accommodation. I also think any parent contemplating buying should also consider their responsibilities as a landlord where tenants are involved.”

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