Report shows Lethbridge rents low, but student groups say it’s still costly – Lethbridge | 24CA News
Campus communities in Lethbridge are quiet proper now however 1000’s of post-secondary college students might be returning to class quickly.
Many of them will want off-campus housing, which comes at a value that the University of Lethbridge Students’ Union says stays unaffordable.
“Rental stressors for students are becoming a constant problem that we’re seeing every year,” stated Maleeka Thomas, president of the University of Lethbridge Students’ Union.
While Rentals.ca’s August report has Lethbridge ranked thirty second out of the 35 Canadian cities on the checklist when it comes to price for a one-bedroom unit, that price has jumped about six per cent year-over-year to $1,168 a month.
For a two-bedroom unit, the report has the value up 9.5 per cent in comparison with 2022. The report relies on month-to-month listings on Rentals.ca’s community of web itemizing companies.
With simply 980 residence items accessible on the University of Lethbridge, a lot of college students are going through a tricky financial actuality.
“The University of Lethbridge is a destination university, so 74 per cent of our student body travel from outside the city to come here to study,” Thomas stated.
“You’re seeing that housing is not accessible or affordable for students.”
For anybody making an attempt to keep away from the rental market, on-campus residing will be aggressive.
Lethbridge College tells Global News its particular person residences are practically full, whereas there’s a waitlist for household residences.
It’s an analogous state of affairs on the U of L, the place the one spots left are for college kids popping out of highschool.
Associate director of housing companies Laura Correal says they assist level college students in direction of accessible choices.
“We do have a page that’s attached to our housing portal that allows them to see other off-campus places that are there for rent,” Correal stated.
Meanwhile, native scholar teams are prioritizing the excessive prices of residing in relation to their advocacy efforts.
“It’s something we recognize is a major issue and it needs to be addressed because they’re our students,” Lethbridge College Students’ Association vice-president of operations and funds Celine Gilbert stated.
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