{"id":302,"date":"2026-06-26T09:10:09","date_gmt":"2026-06-26T09:10:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/?p=302"},"modified":"2026-06-26T09:10:09","modified_gmt":"2026-06-26T09:10:09","slug":"housing-crisis-hits-home-for-college-students","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/?p=302","title":{"rendered":"Housing Crisis Hits Home for College Students"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\n

The national housing crisis sets many college students up for failure before they can get their diplomas. On-campus dorm rooms can be pricey or, worse, substandard. Off-campus options aren\u2019t always better. Rising market rents mean additional financial pressures and competition with individuals and families in a foundering economy.<\/p>\n

Read more Trump Day at the Supreme Court<\/a><\/p>\n

Multifamily housing production hasn\u2019t kept up with demand, so moving from university housing to a private off-campus rental can be just as expensive. A 2023 National Multifamily Housing Council report that local rents tend to track student housing rents: A 10 percent increase in market rents produced an 8 percent increase in rents in student housing. Moody\u2019s 2024 third-quarter analysis of multifamily and student housing costs showed that over a two-year period, student housing rent growth surged in comparison to multifamily rent growth. Those costs have forced university and municipal officials to come to grips with the housing crises students face.<\/p>\n

More from Isabella Counts<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The on-campus housing crunch has forced the state university systems in Massachusetts and California, two of the most expensive states in the country, to take action.<\/p>\n

Amherst, Massachusetts, is home to the flagship campus of the University of Massachusetts (UMass Amherst). Over 60 percent of students reside on campus, and a long-overdue housing redevelopment project is finally taking shape. Last month, UMass Amherst and American Campus Communities (ACC), one of the country\u2019s largest developers of student housing, announced that they will work together on what they call a \u201ccomprehensive, long-range, and phased plan to modernize campus housing while maintaining affordability and exploring non-residential amenities to enhance the campus experience.\u201d<\/p>\n

UMass Amherst officials also plan to redesign current housing options while keeping those accommodations open to on-campus students. They\u2019ll also seek out ideas about these projects from students, faculty, governance groups, and other campus stakeholders starting this summer and continuing into the fall.<\/p>\n

The<\/em> Boston Globe<\/em> has reported, however, that ACC\u2019s acquisition by the private equity firm Blackstone has raised concerns about housing prices that can run higher than those for off-campus apartments. Students in ACC developments in Boston have complained about unexpected fees and subpar amenities.<\/p>\n

These moves are big steps up for the university, but they come too late for students who end up in undesirable living situations. This fall, rising sophomore Joshua Svirsky, chair of the Student Government Association\u2019s undergraduate services committee, will be in a \u201cforced triple,\u201d a room originally designed for two students that now houses three.<\/p>\n

Svirsky explains that currently after a student\u2019s first year of guaranteed housing, UMass Amherst uses a quasi-lottery system, based in part on how many semesters a student has lived on campus. This system, he says, provides almost no certainty for students who need to know as soon as possible where they\u2019re going to live the following year, especially if they decide to move off campus. The median rent in Amherst is about $2,500 a month. \u201c[With] a lot of off-campus housing, you need to sign a lease months in advance, because that stuff fills up really quick,\u201d Svirsky says.<\/p>\n

Off-campus housing issues put municipal officials right in the middle of student housing challenges. Amherst residents have petitioned the university to provide \u201csignificantly\u201d more student housing, and some want town leaders to focus like a laser on providing homes for workers, families, and seniors, not students.<\/p>\n

Councilor-at-Large Mandi Jo Hanneke has served on the Amherst Town Council for nearly a decade and works on town-gown housing issues. She and two other town officials meet with university officials twice a year to work on joint projects. There has been some progress in monitoring off-campus apartments.<\/p>\n

Hanneke, who also serves as the council\u2019s president, points to an updated rental inspection program that was re-established last fall. To protect students and other tenants from unscrupulous landlords, town officials will now perform random checks of rental units for potential code violations. But Amherst has more than 5,000 rental units, so it will take several years to complete the first series of inspections, Hanneke says.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe housing off campus that students tend to rent, some of it was in very poor condition, and still charging very high rents,\u201d Hanneke says, explaining that landlords would self-certify that their properties complied with state and local housing regulations. \u201cAnyone can imagine that that is not the best way to ask whether a building meets building code.\u201d<\/p>\n

When it comes to subjects like housing, she described the dynamic with the university as \u201ca complementary relationship that struggles to have ongoing discussions.\u201d Recent conversations have involved the privately owned Olympia Drive apartment complex, which burned down last November. More than 200 students found themselves without housing; UMass Amherst continues to research other options.<\/p>\n

Read more Lessons From an Arctic Gas Pipe Dream<\/a><\/p>\n

UMass Amherst alumnus Evan Naismith is an Amherst resident with a keen interest in housing. \u201cNobody has the guts on the town council to say, students are human beings too\u2014and even if we don\u2019t have an obligation to house them, it\u2019s actually in our best interest [to do so],\u201d says Naismith, who\u2019s also a student at the University of Connecticut School of Law. \u201cIf we don\u2019t build purpose-built, taxable student housing for them, Amherst residents are simply going to start renting their homes out to these teenagers for an exorbitant profit.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Amherst\u2019s housing pressures largely play out off campus, students at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) face twin challenges. First, the cost of living in Santa Barbara makes it the most expensive college town in the country. A two-bedroom apartment in Santa Barbara has increased by 66 percent in the last decade and now runs anywhere from $3,465 to $4,225 a month.<\/p>\n

On-campus options, on the other hand, make up of a student\u2019s overall cost of attendance and are only guaranteed to incoming freshmen. Last fall, UCSB published its San Benito student housing plan, which would add 2,224 new beds for undergraduates, primarily in the form of four-bedroom, eight-person apartments. Construction is scheduled to be completed by the fall of 2027.<\/p>\n

UCSB has also announced an East Campus Housing Project, which is set to get under way this summer. The existing Santa Rosa residential hall will be demolished; the new dorm, alongside three new apartment buildings, will create an additional 1,688 beds. It\u2019s not yet clear whether more students will obtain housing guarantees.<\/p>\n

The shortage of reasonably priced off-campus housing in this popular coastal city presents even bigger problems for students who have to cope with health and safety risks in UCSB\u2019s existing on-campus units. Students have gathered in online forums to voice their frustrations about pest issues, with some people noting that rodent problems have existed for years.<\/p>\n

Diego Ramirez, a fourth-year UCSB student, lived in three different dormitories during his first three years on campus. Each dorm was worse than the previous one. Ramirez told the Prospect<\/em> that he had to contend with mold, leaky ceilings, mite infestations, and rodents outside the building near the entryways. Although he filed work orders and complained to residential assistants, Ramirez felt the university didn\u2019t take steps to address the problems he identified.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt almost feels like it\u2019s a chore for [UCSB] to have to listen and comply when there are genuine safety risks on this campus,\u201d Ramirez says. \u201cA week turns into two weeks. Two weeks turns into three weeks\u2014and when they finally come around to fixing issues that you have, it\u2019s not always solved.\u201d He finally ended up renting a private apartment near campus for his senior year.<\/p>\n

Kiki Reyes, a UCSB media relations manager, shared a statement provided by the UCSB Housing, Dining & Auxiliary Enterprises, which outlined the university\u2019s process for handling complaints and work orders. It noted that \u201ccomplaints are promptly responded to by our building live-in staff and our residential operations staff.\u201d Any complaints about pests or rodents, the notice said, \u201care responded to by third-party trained professional technicians that inspect, provide treatment measures, and eliminate the concern.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ramirez describes UCSB as his longtime \u201cdream school,\u201d but his experiences with housing soured his perspective. \u201cIt\u2019s detrimental to come to a place that you looked up to for so long and see so many injustices every day,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Covering all the costs of college, whether through financial aid or a part-time job\u2014or both\u2014is no longer feasible for the vast majority of students, especially when housing costs are factored in. Who exactly is responsible for off-campus housing can be like a tennis match, with university administrators and local government officials continuously lobbing serves and returns about the issues they confront.<\/p>\n

The answer to resolving on-campus housing difficulties is clear: Both sides must engage in direct and honest discussions. Students focused on finding alternative housing due to vermin or other potential health problems waste time, money, and emotional energy that could be better spent on their studies and enjoying campus life. Until students and administrators move away from endless rounds of emails and instead sit down face-to-face to discuss short-term fixes and longer-term solutions, housing issues will continue to fester.<\/p>\n

Read more The SAVE Act Comes for Everything<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n


\n
\n
\n<\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

On-campus dorm rooms can be pricey or, worse, substandard. Off-campus options aren\u2019t always better.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":301,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[149],"tags":[150],"class_list":["post-302","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-education-in-america","tag-tagged-california-education-in-america-higher-education-housing-massachusetts-rental-housing"],"yoast_head":"\nHousing Crisis Hits Home for College Students - Frontier Housing Report<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/?p=302\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Housing Crisis Hits Home for College Students - Frontier Housing Report\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"On-campus dorm rooms can be pricey or, worse, substandard. Off-campus options aren\u2019t always better.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/?p=302\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Frontier Housing Report\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-26T09:10:09+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"8 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/frontierhousingreport.com\\\/?p=302#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/frontierhousingreport.com\\\/?p=302\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/frontierhousingreport.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/13a8c63a4bd3b73600b541c1532fc247\"},\"headline\":\"Housing Crisis Hits Home for College Students\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-26T09:10:09+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/frontierhousingreport.com\\\/?p=302\"},\"wordCount\":1536,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/frontierhousingreport.com\\\/?p=302#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/frontierhousingreport.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/dfb6d72bdc9a45339277b2793239026c.webp\",\"keywords\":[\"Tagged: California,\u00a0Education in America,\u00a0higher education,\u00a0Housing,\u00a0Massachusetts,\u00a0rental housing\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Education in America\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/frontierhousingreport.com\\\/?p=302#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/frontierhousingreport.com\\\/?p=302\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/frontierhousingreport.com\\\/?p=302\",\"name\":\"Housing Crisis Hits Home for College Students - Frontier Housing Report\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/frontierhousingreport.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/frontierhousingreport.com\\\/?p=302#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/frontierhousingreport.com\\\/?p=302#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/frontierhousingreport.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/dfb6d72bdc9a45339277b2793239026c.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-26T09:10:09+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/frontierhousingreport.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/13a8c63a4bd3b73600b541c1532fc247\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/frontierhousingreport.com\\\/?p=302#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/frontierhousingreport.com\\\/?p=302\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/frontierhousingreport.com\\\/?p=302#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/frontierhousingreport.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/dfb6d72bdc9a45339277b2793239026c.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/frontierhousingreport.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/dfb6d72bdc9a45339277b2793239026c.webp\",\"width\":2121,\"height\":1414},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/frontierhousingreport.com\\\/?p=302#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/frontierhousingreport.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Housing Crisis Hits Home for College Students\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/frontierhousingreport.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/frontierhousingreport.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Frontier Housing Report\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/frontierhousingreport.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/frontierhousingreport.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/13a8c63a4bd3b73600b541c1532fc247\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/frontierhousingreport.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/frontierhousingreport.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Housing Crisis Hits Home for College Students - Frontier Housing Report","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/?p=302","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Housing Crisis Hits Home for College Students - Frontier Housing Report","og_description":"On-campus dorm rooms can be pricey or, worse, substandard. Off-campus options aren\u2019t always better.","og_url":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/?p=302","og_site_name":"Frontier Housing Report","article_published_time":"2026-06-26T09:10:09+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"8 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/?p=302#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/?p=302"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/#\/schema\/person\/13a8c63a4bd3b73600b541c1532fc247"},"headline":"Housing Crisis Hits Home for College Students","datePublished":"2026-06-26T09:10:09+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/?p=302"},"wordCount":1536,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/?p=302#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/dfb6d72bdc9a45339277b2793239026c.webp","keywords":["Tagged: California,\u00a0Education in America,\u00a0higher education,\u00a0Housing,\u00a0Massachusetts,\u00a0rental housing"],"articleSection":["Education in America"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/?p=302#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/?p=302","url":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/?p=302","name":"Housing Crisis Hits Home for College Students - Frontier Housing Report","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/?p=302#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/?p=302#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/dfb6d72bdc9a45339277b2793239026c.webp","datePublished":"2026-06-26T09:10:09+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/#\/schema\/person\/13a8c63a4bd3b73600b541c1532fc247"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/?p=302#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/?p=302"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/?p=302#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/dfb6d72bdc9a45339277b2793239026c.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/dfb6d72bdc9a45339277b2793239026c.webp","width":2121,"height":1414},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/?p=302#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Housing Crisis Hits Home for College Students"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/","name":"Frontier Housing Report","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/#\/schema\/person\/13a8c63a4bd3b73600b541c1532fc247","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com"],"url":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/302","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=302"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/302\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/301"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=302"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=302"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/frontierhousingreport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=302"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}