Idealis puts the discrepancy down to the introduction of the loan system, which they believe is leading students to stay at home longer. According to the housing provider, this trend is being seen in other university towns as well. Good news for those who are looking for a room. Idealis expects to be able to house all the newcomers by 1 May 2015 at the latest: the same deadline as last year. On 1 July all 261 first-years had a room through Idealis. All foreign students get rooms when they come to Wageningen: the university offers this guarantee. In previous years foreign students sometimes had to share rooms temporarily, but there seems to be no question of that this year.
Peak moments
At the HousingDesk, a broker for private accommodation, it is a ‘peak moment as usual’. Tenants are usually found for rooms within a week. It is hectic, but there is not the panic there was a couple of years ago, says a member of staff. In 2011 the rapid growth of the university led to an extremely tight housing market. In recent years, both the university and Idealis have created new accommodation. The number of private rooms on the market has increased a lot in recent years too, says the HousingDesk. Nine percent more provisional registrations does not automatically mean a nine percent rise in the number of first-years. The number of participants in this year’s Introduction Days is the same as last year. The university will publish the hard figures on first-year numbers at the beginning of September.