Foto: R:oelof Kleis During the introduction days, Resource asked 211 new students about their accommodation. Of the Dutch first-years, half had not found anywhere to live yet – 10 per cent more than a year ago. More significantly, four out of five students without a room were actively looking for one. And that is a lot more than a year ago, when only one in five students with no room were really looking for one.
Peak
Last year, all the uncertainty around the pandemic and online learning made a lot of students decide to stay at home initially. The number opting to stay at home is much smaller this year. The director of the student housing provider Idealis Bart van As confirms this impression. ‘A lot of students stayed at home last year, which left us with a lot of empty rooms. Now, last year’s first-years are looking for a room, and the normal demand from this year’s first-years comes on top of that. That is leading to a peak in demand.’
Many students found themselves a room in May, to get in before the peak in September
Bart van As, Idealis director
The increased demand for rooms was already noticeable back in May, says Van As. ‘Many students found themselves a room then to get in before the peak in September.’ But Van As still assumes that everyone will have a room by 1 May 2022 – the target Idealis sets itself. ‘We think we can achieve that, certainly now the Kirpestein complex is ready.’
Own arrangements
The survey results show that a little over half the students who have got hold of a room are renting it from Idealis. That is pretty much in line with Idealis’s market share, 64 per cent. The rest have made their own arrangements to move into rented or bought studio apartments or houses, or to live with a landlady. Students find these rooms through private accommodation sites, Facebook, or friends.
Tags: #eerstejaars #Idealis #kamernood #Kirpestein #studentencomplex