The housing crisis is a national wide structural problem and occurs in many other party of the Netherlands, especially big student cities as Amsterdam, Delft and Groningen, Rotterdam and Utrecht.
Studying without permanent residence is too well-known problem in the Netherlands. Students regularly face long waiting lists, competitive viewings, and extortionate prices when looking for a room in their city of study. Some international students put out flyers offering monetary reward to people who will help them find a housing opportunity, an article from dispatches Europe declares.
Figures released by Kences – the Centre for Student Housing – have revealed that the current housing shortage is expected to double by the 2024-2025 academic year. According to Kences’ annual National Student Housing Monitor, 22.000 students were left without proper accommodation last autumn. It is expected that by 2024-2025, this figure will have risen to at least 50.000. Especially affected are international students from the crisis. Even as EU-students one who wants to move to Maastricht for educational purposes is recommended to also look for apartments in Belgium and cities close to Maastricht, as the rest is already packed and a place to live for an affordable price is hard to find.
It is estimated that the number of international students will rise after the Brexit as the Netherlands seem now more attractive for foreign students to study in English in another country in Europe. As the Netherlands offer a lot of renounced education opportunities for English-speaking students, it will attract the masses of students who otherwise would have chosen the United Kingdom as European option, whose tuition fees for European students have increased now.
A digital townhall meeting was held on the 15/9/21, organized by the City Council of Maastricht, where students could raise their voices but thus the local authorities’ attention and effort, the crisis remains to be insufficiently tackled. Housing in Maastricht is provided by private providers as well as government-regulated entities, who though control only 30% of the housing market, as a reportage of The Maastricht Diplomat proclaims.
The problem is that student numbers cannot grow endlessly as the housing options do not grow accordingly explains Deputy Mayor Vivianne Heijnen, responsible for housing policy here in Maastricht.The government implemented a certain ‘distance rule’ which limits the number of apartments which may be rented to students in the different parts of Maastricht. Another factor that complicates it to serve the pressing need for enough student housing opportunities. Being homeless puts a severe damper on the college experience, in social as well as in educational aspects.
The University has not much influence and possibilities in developing or inducing more housing opportunities as this power lies with the municipality of Maastricht. However, they can take action by limiting their study capacities, meaning putting a limit on the students who will be admitted to the University and therefore move here. SOS (Shelter Our Students) Maastricht, Homesharing Match Maastrichtare some addresses students with struggles to find appropriate housing can reach out to, however it does not solve the problem, sadly.
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