Students struggle to make ends meet as housing prices increase

Every morning, Phuong Anh, a third-year student in Hanoi, wakes up an hour earlier to get to school on time from her 15m² rented room in Thanh Xuan. The storm of rental prices has forced many students like her to accept living far from school and cramped living conditions to ease the burden on their families.

According to a survey in areas with many universities such as Cau Giay, Thanh Xuan, Hai Ba Trung (old), the current price of a boarding house is about 2 million VND/person/month, not including other expenses. If including parking, wifi, and cleaning fees, a student in a mid-range boarding house has to spend about 3-4 million VND/month. This financial pressure has forced many students to find ways to cope, such as moving to rent a boarding house further away, working part-time from serving at a coffee shop to tutoring, selling goods...

Moving far away, sharing a house, working extra to "support" the rent

Luong Phuong Anh (20 years old, from Ninh Binh), a third-year student at the Academy of Journalism and Communication, said she rented a room near the school for convenience. The room, about 20 square meters on the 5th floor in the My Dinh area ( Hanoi ), that Phuong Anh rented initially cost more than 4 million VND/month. After several price increases, by the beginning of this year, including electricity, water and other services, the total rent was more than 6 million VND/month.

A room of less than 20 square meters for two students on Chua Lang Street (Hanoi) costs 4 million VND/month.

Living with her sister, Phuong Anh said that the rent alone accounts for nearly 70% of their total monthly expenses. Therefore, in August, she and her sister decided to move to rent a house in Thanh Xuan area, 6km from school.

The new room costs 3 million VND/month. Saving nearly half the rent compared to the old place, in return, Phuong Anh and her sister have to wake up nearly an hour earlier every morning to go to school because the road is often congested during rush hour. In addition, the two sisters' living space is only 15 square meters, completely closed, without windows or separate cooking areas, every corner must be used to store things. The available items in the room are all degraded. The air conditioner from the "Napoleon era" consumes a lot of electricity, while each unit of electricity costs up to 4,500 VND, so the two sisters limit turning it on as much as possible, even on hot days.

Like Phuong Anh, many students from other provinces moving to big cities like Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, etc. are struggling with high housing costs, while living costs and tuition fees are constantly increasing.

Not wanting to move far away because of traffic jams and worrying about gas money, but after receiving notice that the price of a rental house increased from 3.5 to 4 million VND/month in September, Do Bich Ngoc, a student at the University of Economics and Industrial Technology (Hanoi), decided to find a part-time job. The room Ngoc is renting in the Bach Mai area is 25 square meters wide, and can accommodate two people. In addition to the room fee, Ngoc has to worry about the following: electricity 4,000 VND/kWh, water 30,000 VND/m3, Wi-Fi 50,000 VND, plus food, transportation and study materials, making the total monthly expenses increase to 4.5-5 million VND.

Students work part-time to cover living expenses.

Ngoc's parents are self-employed traders in Cao Bang , with an unstable income, while also taking care of a younger sibling who is still in school... Not wanting to create more burden for the family, Ngoc took a job serving and cleaning at a cafe, from 3pm to 10pm. "I work here and earn about 2 million/month - just enough to pay for rent," Ngoc said.

However, after 2 months of juggling studying and working part-time, the female student often feels tired and lethargic, plus she feels insecure when thinking about her future when she graduates and has to take care of all her own expenses.

Renting a 15m2 room for 3.6 million VND/month in Tuong Mai area (Hanoi), Le Kim Loan (21 years old, Phu Tho) chose another way to save money: sharing a room with two friends.

“However, each month I have to spend 5-6 million VND on total expenses and living expenses, of which the rent, electricity and water alone are nearly 3 million VND. I don’t want my parents to be burdened because of me, but I only earn 2 million VND from my part-time job, which is not enough, so I still have to call home to ask for ‘aid’,” Loan confided.

How to reduce rental pressure, help students study with peace of mind?

Master Do Duc Long, lecturer of the Faculty of Sociology and Development, Academy of Journalism and Communication, commented that student accommodation prices are fluctuating strongly. In areas near universities and colleges, rental prices have increased by 20-40% in just a few months, while the quality of accommodation has not improved accordingly. Many students are forced to share rooms, rent accommodation far from school or accept cramped spaces to save costs, directly affecting their health, spirit and quality of study.

Faced with this situation, MSc. Long said that universities and local authorities need to coordinate to ensure stable and suitable accommodation for students. He suggested that schools should build or expand standard dormitories with reasonable rents, ensuring security and basic living conditions. In addition, local authorities can support by planning land funds and encouraging social investment in quality boarding houses exclusively for students.

According to MSc. Long, financial pressure is not only a burden for students but also a concern for many parents in their hometowns. He emphasized the need for more practical support policies, such as requiring landlords to register rental prices with the government to ensure transparency, and at the same time building an application or electronic portal to help students look up, evaluate and reflect on the quality of accommodation.

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/sinh-vien-chat-vat-gong-ganh-giua-con-bao-tang-gia-nha-tro-2456372.html