More than 40,000 Chinese students are expected to fly back into Australia for the start of first semester after the Chinese Ministry for Education made a “special announcement” on Saturday saying it would of students who studied remotely.
Chinese student Jasmine Zhang at the University of Sydney. She pays $500 a week to rent a studio in Summer Hill.Edwina Pickles
China’s education ministry has since said there may be exceptions for students who face logistical hurdles before the start of semester in late February. In Sydney there is a major one:finding a place to live.
Average rents across the city are now upwards of $700 a week. Meanwhile,several student housing providers have no vacancies left for the remainder of the year,and those which are still available are charging more than $400 for a single bed in a shared room.
Student accommodation at housing provider Scape’s Redfern property includes large studios costing $729 a week,while a bed in a twin-share apartment is $419 a week and a single room in a five-bedroom apartment is $569 a week. They are all booked out for semester 1.
At Sydney University Village there is a waitlist for a one-bedroom apartment that costs $903.50 per week if occupied by two people. Studio apartments on Broadway,priced at $799 per week through student housing provider Iglu,are sold out,as are five- and six-bedroom share units.
The University of Sydney has advised that its student accommodation buildings Abercrombie Studios,The Regiment Student Accommodation and the Queen Mary Building are at capacity for 2023 and operating a waitlist.
“Emergency accommodation is offered to students who need it – along with financial bursaries to help cover rent,food,and other general living and study expenses,” a spokeswoman said.
The University of Sydney brought in more than $1.2 billion in international student revenue in 2021,of which 87 per cent was from Chinese students,a NSW Auditor-General’s report found last year. The University of NSW raised more than $700 million in overseas student revenue,followed by the University of Technology with just over $300 million.
Chinese student Jasmine Zhang,24,from Wuhan,studies international relations at the University of Sydney and pays $500 a week to rent a studio in Summer Hill.
“I think it is quite expensive,I can’t afford it,I need to find a casual job,” she said.
The University of Sydney brought in more than $1.2 billion in international student revenue in 2021.Edwina Pickles
UTS housing expert Professor Alan Morris said the high cost of renting accommodation meant some international students would often find themselves in precarious,insecure and inadequate rental accommodation – and said universities had a responsibility to help them.
“Clearly there is going to be a very substantial portion of international students who can’t afford to pay those prices,” he said. “The universities are very wealthy,they generate billions of dollars,they should have a duty of care to the students.”
The University of Technology sold three of its student accommodation properties to Scape in 2021 but retained a 720-bed complex called Yura Mudang. Current students have priority access to accommodation.
Founder of property analytics company SQM Research,Louis Christopher,said the rush for Chinese students to return would further inflame Sydney’s already expensive private rental market. Houses and units are now renting for an average of $732 a week compared to $574 in 2019.
“In the CBD of Sydney at the moment there are currently 440 dwellings available for rent and we’re talking about thousands and thousands of new arrivals who want to stay around the city and universities,” he said.
“The now expected surge in students has not been foreseen and could create an additional crisis in the rental market.”
Tenants Union of NSW chief executive Leo Patterson Ross said there were four loose groups of international students:those who would stay in student accommodation,those who could afford to rent privately,some who moved further out for a cheaper deal,and those who relied on share housing.
He said those in share houses were increasingly in more far-flung suburbs from the city centre,especially in south-western suburbs including Fairfield,Cabramatta and Bankstown. In some cases,so-called “head tenants” would take a student’s passport,making it difficult for them to leave a bad situation.
“When you’re a house of students,it does mean people are vulnerable to being taken advantage of[...] there is not a lot of support for them while they’re studying here,” he said.
A spokeswoman for the University of NSW said:“We will also provide as many extra classes and extra accommodations as possible but recognise that this may be limited given the high student demand the university enjoys.”
UTS,Iglu and Scape were approached for comment.
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