We red-flag Uppsala in major student housing report

This blog post summarizes this year's housing report from the Swedish Students' Union (SFS).

In the housing report, 36 study locations are marked red, yellow or green depending on how quickly a student can expect to find secure housing with reasonable conditions during the autumn semester. Uppsala Student Union produces data for the Uppsala section.

SFS's criteria for secure housing are that the student must rent in the first place, within 30 minutes of campus and have a monthly rent that does not exceed 30 percent of the study grant (approx. SEK 3,600 per month). In addition, access to the housing must take place within 30 days of registration - or in connection with the start of the semester. Such housing must be available to anyone studying at least 15 credits during a semester.

Affordable rental housing is difficult to access due to shortages. This leads to high competition and long queues. When the time between the admission decision and the start of the semester is as short as it is, students who have not been able to join the queue before the decision are in a particularly vulnerable situation. Many students who finish their studies experience problems finding accommodation, which means that their stay in student accommodation lasts longer than is legal. This becomes a bottleneck in the system that has seen action in the form of tighter control systems from housing managers.

The SFS proposes three measures to ease the housing market situation:

1. a monthly system of income testing for housing benefit.
This year's housing report shows that rent increases for student
accommodation are even higher than last year. There are still places of study where the
main problem is that rents are too high for students to
afford them, not that there is a shortage of student housing. The housing allowance can
ease the housing costs for students and enable them to
afford the high cost of rent.

2. government support for the construction of student housing at reasonable rents.
There is still a housing shortage in many parts of the country, both in larger and smaller
cities, and more needs to be built to meet student demand and
needs. This year's rent increases are high and newly produced housing often has a
high rent that students find difficult to afford. It is therefore both the shortage
of student housing and the high cost of housing that pose a major
problem for students.

Today, there is no government support or financial incentives for the construction of
student housing, unlike in other Nordic countries. For Sweden to
be a knowledge nation to be reckoned with, the state needs to invest in the construction
of more student housing at a rent that students can actually afford.

3. all new student accommodation built should have space for a
desk or equivalent workspace to enable self-study.
How students use their accommodation is changing over time. More and more people are studying and
working from home as a result of the increased digitalization in recent years. An
average full-time student today spends 24 hours a week on self-study,
much of which takes place at home.

The Swedish National Board of Housing, Building and Planning sets requirements for the functions that must be present in a home. In dwellings
smaller than 35 square meters, different functions can overlap, which
means, for example, that the functions for daily interaction, sleep, rest and meals
can use the same space. In corridor housing, the spaces for daily
interaction and meals can also be located in connection with the common kitchen. Today,
the National Board of Housing, Building and Planning's rules do not guarantee that a student will have space for a
desk or equivalent workspace, either in or adjacent to housing.

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Uppsala Student Union will continue its work on student housing as long as Uppsala remains a red-listed city. Students who come to Uppsala should be able to count on secure housing when they start studying. Nor should they have to go around worrying about not knowing how long they can stay in their sublet apartment. Students need to be able to focus on their studies and should not have to take on extra jobs to cover their rent.

More updates to come on our work to push for a better housing market for Uppsala's students. Follow our social media channels to keep up to date with this work. Are you not a member and want to support our work? Then of course you should become a member!

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