Securing Student Accommodation: Rental Prices Across the Country
Education
5
min read
20 Aug 2021
Securing the right student accommodation for your soon-to-be college-goer as they embark on one of the most nerve-wrecking - and exciting – parts of their life, is a balancing act: achieving what’s right for them and also what’s right for your household budget.
To make things a little easier, we’ve compiled this year's student campus accommodation costs, average rent prices for each college town from the Daft Irish Rental Price Report Q1 2021 plus the average costs for individual areas from the Residential Tenacies Board Average Monthly Rental Report 2020 - so you can see the lay of the land.
The report show that renters are moving away from Dublin to other parts of the country; and average rent prices and demand is increasing in rural areas. In Dublin, rents were down 3.2% in Q1 2021 compared to the previous Q, while they rose 7.2% in the rest of the country.
If you're thinking of taking out a student loan, check out our blog on everything you need to know on student loans.
1. Campus Accomodation
2. Dublin
3. Maynooth
4. Cork
5. Waterford
6. Limerick
7. Galway
You might be toying with the idea of on-site accommodation, if you are lucky enough to get it. This is a nice way to ease your new student into college life, as it eliminates stresses such as transport or landlord issues. Campus rooms are done on a lottery basis or first come first served while some are reserved for first years or international students.
Below is a cost of each college’s onsite student accommodation. Most run on a lottery basis, and some application deadlines may be closed already for certain colleges.
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DCU student accommodation - Incoming 2021/2022 first year students can apply to stay on the Glasnevin and St Patricks College campuses. Current students will be placedin Glasneven and All Hallows. Students can apply online, and allocations will be lottery based. Onsite accommodation is €5,214 in total for the academic year their Larkfield residency, €5,607 for Hampstead,and €5,112 for St.Patick’s.
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UCD student accommodation– UCD is the most expensive student accommodation, costing students €203 per week at the campus’s two cheapest halls (Belgrove and Merville). This tots up to just over €7,100 for the Academic year.
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Maynooth student accommodation – With limited beds, Maynooth urges parents and students to seek accommodation around the town as opposed to on campus. Prices listed did not increase from 2020, and stand at a total of €5,870 the academic year for a for a single room with an ensuite in River, Ryehall and Courtyard accomodations. For a single room with no ensuite, it costs €4,400 in Ryehall and Village accomodation.
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Cork: UCC student accommodation - Although the deadline is finished this year, Cork’s Victoria Lodge accommodation will be €6,253 for the full academic year for a room with an ensuite, and €6,031 for a single room.
UCC StudentPad is an online search engine that lets you search for rooms, houses and apartments. It includes facilities such as a message-board, where students may post information regarding the availability of accommodation for viewing by other students. It also details the minimum standards when looking for accommodation.
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UL student accomodation – In UL, you can rent a two bedroom apartment in Dromoe for €7,270, a 6 bed for €6,615, while an 8 bed house is cheaper at €4,912. All those who have not applied for accomodation or who are unsuccessful in the lottery should look at the off-campus accomodation service.
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Waterford IT accommodation – An ensuite single room in Waterford Institute of Technology costs €4,747 for single room ensuite for the academic year, and €4,601 for a single room.
For those too late booking or unsuccessful, check out their off-site accomodation here.
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Galway NUIG accommodation– In NUIG Corrib Village, price for a shared twin room is €3,630 for the year, a doubel room is €5225, single room with ensuite €5,410.
For off-site accomodation, click here.
Students who aren’t lucky enough to get on-campus accommodation and don’t want to rent digs will have to commute a little further. Nationwide, average rents are 1.7% higher than they were in the same period of 2020 - but in Dublin, they are 3.2% lower.
Even though there may be more transport costs, North and West Co. Dublin offer more affordable rent options.
- North Co. Dublin €1,778 (+0.9%)
- West Dublin, €1,858 (+0.3%)
- South County: €2,221 (-1.2%)
- South City: €2,111 (-3.7%)
Although not as up-to-date, the Residential Tenancy Board Monthly Rental Report from Q1 202 shows the rent prices across all Dublin areas. The prices listed below from the report are the average total costs to rent a 4-bed house. We've broken them down by cheapest and most expensive:
Cheapest areas:
- D.20, €1,885 (Palmerstown, Clondalkin)
- D.11 €1,958 - (West Dublin, Finglas)
- D.15 €1,971 - (Blanchardstown, Clonsilla, Ongar)
- D.5 €1,976 - (Raheny,
Areas close to colleges
- D.9 €1,958 - (DCU, St.Pat's: Drumcondra/Glasneven/City Centre)
- D. 1: €2,369 (Trinity, DBS: City centre)
- D.4 €3,735 - (UCD/Belfield)
According to the RTB monthly rental report, the average rent in Maynooth across all property types is €1,578 - which is about the average for the county. A one bed apartment was listed at €1,106. While one two bed detatched house was €1,269.
However there are regular transport options such as the train or bus from surrounding areas such as Leixslip, Celbridge and Kilcock, and these areas cost slightly less.
- Kilkock €1,209
- Celbridge €1,365
- Leixslip €1,409
- Clane €1,245
- Sallins €1,230
UCC offer student apartments as well as shared housing which you can view on their website. Digs is a viable option for students here, as they are plentiful. We’ve pulled data from the most recent RTB rental report to give you an idea of average rent in individual areas from the cheapest to the most expensive places to let around the city. To avail of cheaper rents, students might have to commute a short distance.
- Montenotte: €1,000
- Passage West: €1,077
- Tower: €1,010
- Blackpool: €1,010
- Tivoli: €1,055
- Glanmire: €1,161
- Wilton €1,146
- Ballincollig: €1,237
- Douglas: €1,260
- Ballintemple: €1,284
- Frankfield: €1,300
- Blackrock: €1,342
- Bishopstown: €1,346
- Rochestown: €1,286
- Ballinmure: €1,206
Cost of renting in Waterford has remained the cheapest of all student towns. According to the RTB report, the average price for rent (taking into account all property types) in Waterford city is €817 (Up from €750 in 2019) - with prices starting from €644 in Portlaw. This area is still an18 minute drive from Waterford IT so you may have to weigh up the cost of transport etc. All locations below are within a half an hour walk to the college or ten minute drive, with some a more central.
Since 2019, these prices have gone up approx €60-€100 in each area.
- Portlaw €682
- Poleberry: 850
- Mary St €750
- Penrose Lane €777
- Canada St. €870
- Johns Hill €764
- Dunmore East €985
- Ferrybank €888
- Cork road (close to WIT) €823
- Dunmore road €1014
- Templars Hall €1,053
The average cost of rent in Limerick based on the RTB rental report for all property types, is €1,008. For a five bed house, Daft reports an average of €1,293.
- Dock Road €845
- Corbally €1,068
- Dooradoyle €1,118
- Raheen €1,067
- Annacotty €1,173
- Castletroy €1,220
Again, a few of the areas listed below might be a 30 minute drive from the university, so you will need to weigh in accommodation costs/transport options. In the RTB report, the average cost of renting across all property types in Galway City in 2020 is €1,179 with Daft reporting €1,400 for Q1 of 2021. The prices listed below are the average across all property types.
- Athenry €937
- Moycullen €1,048
- Claregalway €1,143
- Ballybane €1,080
- Oranmore €1,121
- Doughiska €1,140
- Wellpark (close to NUIG) €1,100
- Rahoon (close to NUIG) €1,023
- Knocknacarra €1,165
- Renmore €1,257
- Salthill €1,195
- Roscam €1,261
- Ballybrit €1,106
- Bohermore €1,254
- Barna €1,289
- Newcastle (close to NUIG) €1,306