Dormitories are getting more expensive, but students still choose them. Interestingly, Warsaw is not the most expensive place to stay

Student housing is still the cheapest option for many students, although it is getting more expensive. – I lived in apartments, but the prices are very high for a student budget and now I pay between twice and a third less than I used to pay – says Kasia, a student at the Jagiellonian University.

Rates vary depending on the city and room standard. – A place in a dormitory ranges from around PLN 650 for a place in a double room to over PLN 1,300 for a single – informs Katarzyna Górowicz-Maćkiewicz from the University of Wrocław.

– These prices start from PLN 390, and the highest standard is PLN 920 – says Agnieszka Kapela from the Warsaw University of Technology.

It turns out that the capital is not the most expensive – the price for a student dorm in Warsaw is less than 1000 PLN. It is much more expensive in Wrocław, Poznań or Kraków.

– We have to be aware that the maintenance costs of these buildings, these dormitories, are rising, but we try, of course, to be as accessible to students as possible – says Adam Koprowski from the Jagiellonian University.

Prices for dorms, unfortunately, are rising regularly. Students at the Silesian Medical University have to pay 50 percent more than last year. Today, a single room costs up to PLN 1,200. That is why students mostly choose double rooms.

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– In reality, there are few single rooms, because we transform single rooms into double rooms, which also reduces the costs of use, and in fact, students pay half, i.e. as much as for a double room – says Agata Pustułka from the Silesian Medical University in Katowice.

In addition, more students can live in the dormitory, and there is no shortage of willing people.

– We expect that the occupancy will be almost full or almost full. We know that not everyone can afford to rent an apartment or even a room in an apartment – says Agnieszka Kapela from the Warsaw University of Technology.

– We see this trend, which is taking place not only in Kraków, but also throughout Poland, that more and more people are interested from year to year – comments Adam Koprowski from the Jagiellonian University.

The main reason for this is the rising prices of real estate on the market. For a room in a private offer we have to pay up to 1500 PLN.

– Depending on the location, the closer to the campus of a given university, the more expensive – points out Maciej Dymek from Private House Brokers.

There are also additional costs.

– In today's market realities, a student must take into account the initial costs of basically every rental in the amount of the first rent and the amount of the deposit, and in selected cases also the commission of the real estate agency that mediates in the rental – says Maciej Dymek from Private House Brokers.

The cost of renting a studio flat is even more discouraging for students. In a university town, it is an average of 3,000 złoty per month.

– Prices range from two to three thousand and a half thousand. The more expensive, the closer to the center – notes Maciej Dymek. In an academic city, this is an average of three thousand zlotys per month. That is why the cheaper alternative is winning more and more often. Especially since studying is getting more expensive year by year.

– I see these differences in amounts, everything is going up from year to year. We as students feel it the most. Wanting to combine studying with work, it's not that easy. I'm lucky that my parents help me, earlier last year I managed to get a scholarship. It was helpful, but a scholarship is not an amount that you can easily live on – admits Kasia.

There are still too few places in student dorms. In Poland, there are 10 students for every place.