Students face brunt of Ireland's rental crisis

The academic year of 2026/7 is fast approaching, which means students must once again make living arrangements. The stress and worry of finding suitable accommodation near their chosen university is always a struggle. Thousands of students will be hoping to source a room, but the availability and cost may be an issue.

The accommodation crisis has been happening for several years, and it is especially difficult in the University of Limerick (UL). The university has limited on-campus rooms, and these are usually reserved for first years and foreign exchange students. As a result, students will be looking for alternative off-campus houses.

More than 40% of UL students must commute regularly, as they either cannot find any suitable place to live or the prices landlords are charging are too high. This means students must own a car, as there is little direct transport to and from the college.

Caelinn McGrath, UL psychology student, lives only 6km away from campus. She claims it takes ‘best case scenario an hour and a half to get home’ on the bus. This is her only option as a commuter, because there are usually no direct buses to specific areas. She also admits that she’d be ‘actually quicker running home most days’. 

There are multiple private housing estates nearby the campus, but they can cost up to €800 to €900 per month for a room. The houses are extremely old and small but can house up to seven people at one time.

There’s a possibility there'll only be one bathroom for everyone to use, with black mould growing on the ceiling. The kitchens have no ovens, microwaves, kettles, or air fryers and must be bought by the residents.  Some rooms don’t provide wardrobes, and students are told to ‘use the broom cupboard by the front door’.

The effects of the crisis include students having to take drastic measures to just attend college.

Joshua Kelly, UL journalism student, claims that before his first year, he sent ‘at least 80 emails and messages between Facebook Marketplace and DoneDeal’ and eventually received an offer the week before college started. The room was a 40-minute walk away from campus with extreme rules expected of students. He was ‘restricted to certain parts of the house only, and the kitchen was out of bounds'.

"I had no cooking facilities, so I lived off microwavable meals from my bedroom."

One day, he decided to buy an air fryer for upstairs in the attic, which was the communal area. His landlord made an appearance and ‘actually took the air fryer and walked off with it’.

His second-year house was not much of an improvement, as when he arrived, there was ‘wet paint on the walls, mouldy food in the fridge, a mouse infestation, and cameras all over the property to make sure we weren’t inviting any guests over’.

In Galway, the crisis is arguably worse than the rest of the country. There are far too many students for the places available to live. A former student of the University of Galway (NUIG) was unable to afford any on or off-campus houses around the area. She resorted to living with her grandparents in Connemara.

She was born and raised in Mayo, so commuting to Galway was out of the question. She was forced to take the bus to and from Connemara, an hour each way, every day. She expressed how she ‘felt disconnected from the college experience, as I couldn’t join any societies or try out different things because my latest bus was at 8pm’.

The hardest part for her was struggling to make new friends and ‘relying too much on the friends I did have, just for somewhere to go without forking out money to wait in a café for hours on end’.

Unfortunately, at the end of her first year, she ultimately made the decision to drop out of college and work full-time at home instead. This was just the easier option, in her mind, as she didn’t have to worry about money and ‘wasting another year there’.

As a result of this and many other stories, Atlantic Technological University (ATU) in Galway, Mayo, Sligo, and Donegal has called for homeowners around the city to open their doors to students. Under the Rent-a-Room scheme, anyone who has a spare bedroom is asked to consider hosting a student for the academic year.

Under this scheme, the homeowner could earn up to €14,000 tax-free per year. Dr Orla Flynn, ATU President, says that ‘by offering a spare room, homeowners can play a direct role in supporting a student's education. It is more than simply providing a roof over someone's head - it can offer reassurance and stability to a student as they settle into university life’.

Hosts are expected to provide a welcoming environment, access to basic amenities, and clear communication about household arrangements. Transport, meals, and other facilities don't have to be covered in the agreement.

UL students union president, Eva McCormack, has also commented on the situation, saying that ‘accommodation in UL is at a breaking point’, and ‘no student should have to sacrifice their education over a place to live, and we won't stop pushing until real solutions are delivered’.

The union wants ‘more purpose-built student accommodation’ and ‘better housing conditions for students living with private landlords’.

Meanwhile, UL says it is continuously working with the Government, Limerick partners, and wider sectors to solve the issue. It notes that a ‘proposal to develop student accommodation is currently being considered by the university, in consultation with stakeholders including the Higher Education Authority’.

The accommodation crisis in the country is at one of the worst stages it’s ever been. Landlords are overcharging students for the absolute bare minimum, and students simply have no other choice but to pay it. College should be one of the greatest times of your life, with no financial or housing condition struggles, but until new Government strategies are put into place, it will continue to be a ‘disadvantage for all of those looking to go into third-level education’.

• Eva Garrett is a student at University of Limerick.