This photo shows a Seoul National University dormitory building. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, Feb. 23 (Korea Bizwire) — An increasing number of students are looking for cheaper places to live as rising consumer prices are affecting rents of studio apartments near college campuses.
Real estate brokerage app Dabang reported a 34-percent increase in the monthly rent of studio apartments near Ewha Womans University that are smaller than 33 square meters in size as of November last year compared to the previous year.
The average price increased to 691,000 won (US$532).
During the same period, the monthly rent for studio apartments near Hanyang University increased from 456,000 won to 577,000 won, while the monthly rent for studio apartments near Yonsei University jumped from 482,000 won to 554,000 won.
Boarding houses, which had been sidelined by studio apartments and dormitories, are starting to regain popularity.
Boarding houses are popular for being able to share rooms in a single home, including restrooms and other shared spaces, excluding tenants from having to pay for the cost of heating or maintenance. They also provide meals.
“All of our rooms are full, but we’re still getting phone calls from prospective tenants,” one of the boarding house owners near Chung-Ang University said.
The popularity of school dormitories is also on the rise. Although dorms have a curfew and students have to share the space, they are cheaper than renting a studio apartment, resulting in higher demand.
The rate of competition over school dormitories at Chung-Ang University reached 2.2 people for a single room for this year’s spring semester, up from 1.4 people last year.
Competition over dormitories at Hanyang University, too, reached 1.9 people for a single room this year, up from 1.4 people last year and 1.3 people in 2021.
The Korea Council for University Education reported that dormitories in the Seoul region were able to accommodate only 17.7 percent of all students enrolled in schools there.
H. M. Kang (hmkang@koreabizwire.com)
