The accommodation crisis that has plagued students for years is showing no signs of relenting, with widespread low availability ensuring high rents, which have soared to 13 per cent above their peak in 2008, according to a new report.
The report, undertaken by Daft.ie, paints a grim picture for student-tenant hopefuls, pointing to the disadvantages they face in a competitive market, such as their low incomes, their requirement of nine-month leases as opposed to year-long leases and their lack of references or stable earnings. It even went as far as to say that students were unlikely to get a viewing, let alone a lease in today’s private rental sector.
Rent prices in Dublin, where many of the country’s third-level institutions are based, have increased 12.3 per cent year on year and this has been exacerbated by the decline in the number of properties available to rent. On August 1st of this year, only 1,121 properties were available for rent in Dublin, 20 per cent less than on the same date last year. There are now fewer than 3,000 properties on the rental market nationwide.
The average rent for a single room in Dublin city centre is €632, while a double is €724. In contrast, in Limerick city centre, rents for single and double rooms are €309 and €375 respectively.
If the crisis is to be even partially resolved by September, according to the report, it will need urgent action taken. Suggesting possible solutions, the report referenced the initiative to expand digs housing relaunched this summer by Daft.ie with Trinity College Dublin Students’ Union (TCDSU) and University College Dublin Students’ Union (UCDSU).
The scheme advertises to Irish homeowners, appealing to them to rent any spare rooms to students, highlighting that they can earn up to a yearly sum of €14,000 in non-taxable income.
Students who received their CAO offers yesterday are facing the most difficult housing situation seen in Dublin, with some students having to resort to sleeping in cars, on friends’ couches and, in rare cases, on the streets. These figures were released today as part of a report carried out by the Union of Students in Ireland (USI) in the wake of the Daft.ie report.
USI’s report showed that 41 per cent of students would prefer to live in purpose-built student accommodation, while just 27 per cent favoured privately rented accommodation. Students did not favour digs accommodation with 43 per cent naming it their least preferred option.
Speaking on RTÉ Radio One today about the crisis, Minister of State for Higher Education Mary Mitchell O’Connor, appealed to students to “consider digs” in response to these new figures released today. Talking about a solution to the problem she said that she is “going to be putting pressure on the universities” to deliver projects.
As it stands, 33 per cent of students live in purpose-built student accommodation and 31 per cent in privately rented accommodation. Seven per cent live in digs, while the number of homeowners offering rooms rose by 4,160 between 2004 and 2015.
In a press statement, USI President Michael Kerrigan spoke about the “race” for accommodation: “In many instances, this competition has pushed students to take accommodation that exists outside of their price range, or to drop out of college.”
“There is still a shortage of accommodation, and students are being crammed into small spaces, with harsh living conditions and horror stories of the state of living.”
He warned that “while most of the accommodation has already been taken up, anyone who has already accepted their place at college should start making arrangements for accommodation right now before term starts to avoid disappointment”.
One in five students start their search for accommodation in August and 36 per cent need between one and three months to find housing.
The report also found that 75 per cent of students pay for their own accommodation during term time with 58 per cent of students stating their monthly cost of accommodation of €251-500. More than 20 per cent of students have suffered unexpected rent increases.
Responding to the crisis, the government launched a national accommodation strategy to improve student accommodation, encouraging colleges to build student accommodation in the long-term and pushing for an increase in digs and private student housing companies in the short-term. The privatisation of the student housing market has seen Trinity pay companies to secure beds for its students in their accommodation complexes, with raised prices for students.
Work has begun on Trinity’s purpose-built Oisín House accommodation complex which will house 250 students.
