The Irish Are Finding Gold In Student Housing

The HEA (Higher Education Authority) in Ireland is due to present a report on student accommodation in the coming weeks, as the country sees rent hikes nationwide.

This comes after Trinity College Dublin recently announced that their rates would increase by 3.5% this September, following a rise of 3% last year.

National College of Ireland also reported a 6.2% increase; DCU 3%; University of Limerick 3.5%, and NUIG 3%.

According to the Irish Times, the Belgrove block of apartments on UCD's Belfield Campus will increase by 17% (from €5,481 to €6,427), whilst its Blackrock accommodation has already increased by an astonishing 40%, rising from €4091 last year to €5746.

Despite these increases, Glen Fitzpatrick of the Union of Students in Ireland says that on-campus facilities will continue to be booked up well in advance.

However, since 2011 rents across Dublin have risen by 26%, meaning more and more students may struggle to find affordable housing in the capital. Domhnall McGlacken-Byrne, student union president at Trinity College, said that some students in Dublin may opt to commute from home, whilst others may rent a room in a stranger's home as a more affordable alternative while at university.

In the past 12 months alone rental prices in the capital have jumped by 15%. Cork, Galway and Limerick are also seeing their highest rate of inflation since early 2007 - and these increases show no signs of stopping.

Image courtesy of Flickr, Creative Commons.