Rising monthly rents near campuses in Seoul have become a primary factor in the increasing financial burden on university students. Dabang, a real estate information platform, analyzed the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport’s transaction disclosure system on January 14, 2026. According to the analysis, the average monthly rent for a studio apartment in Seoul with a floor area of 33m2 or less stood at 720,000 won based on a deposit of 10 million won.

University dormitories serve as the primary alternative for students who cannot afford Seoul’s increasingly high rental fees. However, with the dormitory accommodation rate in Seoul at a mere 8.7%, the vast majority of students must find housing elsewhere. Under these circumstances, finding reasonably priced rooms of decent quality is increasingly challenging. According to local real estate agencies in Gongneung-dong, Nowon-gu—where SeoulTech is located—students must start looking for housing as soon as the semester ends to secure a good room at a reasonable price. However, a problem arises: most good rooms near campus are already taken while students who applied for dormitories are still waiting for admission results. As a result, students who fail to secure a dormitory room are left with significantly fewer housing options. In addition, institutional safeguards against risks such as rental deposit fraud and house price fixing during the housing contract process remain insufficient. These issues pose an even greater threat to international students, who are particularly vulnerable due to limited knowledge of local housing practices. The problem has grown more urgent as the international student population in Korea has risen by nearly 50% since 2021.

The government has also introduced policies such as monthly rent subsidies for young people and youth-specific lease deposit loans in an effort to strengthen housing support infrastructure. However, access to these benefits is often determined based on parental income brackets, creating limitations for young adults who have little or no personal income.

Moreover, public housing programs such as Haengbok Housing have been criticized for being located far from city centers and offering an insufficient number of units. Other options, including regional dormitories and public rental housing for university students, have been deemed ineffective due to insufficient supply relative to demand.

To address these challenges, the government need to evaluate the effectiveness of existing youth housing policies and consider strengthening legal protections. In addition, universities are required to improve students’ housing conditions by expanding dormitory capacity and providing more proactive support in addressing related issues.

Note: In Dabang’s analysis, “studio apartments” refers to row houses and multi-unit dwellings with a floor area of 33m2 or less.

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Jaeho Lim

limjaeho4119@seoultech.ac.kr

Sieun Jeon

cherryjeon06@seoultech.ac.kr

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