Why student accommodation appears to be disproportionately expensive

Okay, so granted, accommodation for university students does indeed appear to be disproportionately expensive, but when you look at the actual value you get and if you choose strategically located accommodation for uni-life the value comes to the fore and justifies the seemingly hefty general cost. We’ll get into some great options as far as that goes in a bit, otherwise, it’s perhaps pertinent to explore some of the factors and elements which make accommodation for students appear to be so disproportionately expensive.

Taking advantage of the demand

For the most part, it’s a matter of the suppliers of the student rental market taking advantage of the clear, obvious and sometimes urgent need for accommodation. Often supply is limited and there’s great demand, so the power is in the hands of the landlords.

The market does tend to normalise around a certain point that’s closer to the reality of the economic situation of the university town, so if you end up paying a lot higher than the normalisation point, it would probably be because you’re looking to live a little more luxuriously. This is because most of the time, they might not know what to consider when choosing student accommodation. For those looking for a more friendly living experience, shared student houses like the ones offered by Hybr could be a popular choice.

Living in a shared student house allows students the freedom to create a personalized living space. It’s also important to consider a few key factors when looking for student accommodation such as proximity to university campuses, local amenities, transport links and security features.

Students are high-risk tenants

Another factor that can be identified to definitely hike up the price of student accommodation is the risk profile students carry. Just go and check out private accommodation units owned by the university in a specific town and you’ll ask yourself just exactly what it is that students get up to, to result in a hole in the ceiling! In most student accommodations, the rate of repairs needed for the property is high. Owners might often find themselves needing the repair services of a plumbing, handyman, or roofing contractor in Austin, TX (or elsewhere), thanks to some of the antics that the student body gets up to. This could likely be another factor that contributes to the high rates of properties for the same.

Market-related property prices

As is the case with the high-risk profile of students driving up costs due to higher property insurance premiums and risk-management considerations, the presence of an academic institution in a particular town automatically drives up property prices. Landlords obviously pass on the costs to their tenants, so naturally, the costs to rent would be higher.

Costs offset by close proximity to amenities

We’re now getting into the territory of balancing things out, with a consideration of the amenities a university town is typically awash with. This ready access to pretty much all the amenities required of any person offsets the costs of the student accommodation itself, with discounts afforded everybody who flashes a student card and just prices that are generally geared towards supporting student life.

Is it really disproportionately expensive?

Taking into account all the factors explored above, it becomes apparent that student accommodation is not really as disproportionately expensive at it appears to be. Look, it can definitely get disproportionately expensive, but it doesn’t have to be if you consider options such as serviced apartments in the likes of Clifton, Bristol. There are some great deals to be had, some of which can result from simply talking to rental property owners about some other options that better match your specific needs they might know of.