Private Student Residential Halls – a New Breed of Digs

When most people think of student accommodation they think of grotty houses and flats but the new trend for building private student residential halls is completely different to that.

Now the Daily Telegraph has taken a closer look at this new breed of student accommodation to find out why undergraduates are so willing to pay extra for creature comforts.

The Telegraph’s reporter headed to Manchester’s Vita Student accommodation and praised the level of quality that was being offered.

Student tenants there get to enjoy trendy apartments as well as a 24-hour private gym.

Private student residential halls come with ‘mod cons’

All of the studio flats come with en-suite bathrooms and there’s a kitchenette with a microwave oven, hob and fridge.

While there isn’t a washing machine in the apartment, students no longer have to sit watching their laundry go round and round because once the washing machine has finished in the building’s laundry it will notify them via a smartphone app.

The developer that owns the building says that they’ve had no shortage of interest from students for their quality student private halls.

Indeed, five such residential halls for students were opened last September in Bristol, Exeter, Manchester Bristol and Southampton – all of the accommodation was snapped up by the beginning of the university term.

Private student residential halls – popular with overseas students

The private residential student halls are now home to more than 1,000 tenants who come from 80 different countries.

Property developers are increasingly providing purpose-built student accommodation which comes with free Wi-Fi and the rent includes the utility bills to help meet this demand.

A spokeswoman from Vita told the Daily Telegraph that this luxury end of private student halls were becoming more popular, particularly with students from overseas.

One student property provider in London offers its student tenants a choice of two cafes and a post room which receives around 400 package a day – mainly of items that tenants have ordered on the Internet.

Security and comfort is key for private student residential halls

There are other attractions for private residential halls of residence for students and among them is the reassurance that security is provided 24 hours a day.

In most of these accommodation blocks, there’s also a permanently manned reception desk and many of them organise residential get-togethers so people get to know one another.

Alongside this growth in luxury student private halls of residence is an acknowledgement from universities that they need to improve their own purpose-built student accommodation.

This means that they are also offering to meet students’ needs and wants – but also because they need to rent the same studios out to their summer visitors who also have high expectations.

The newspaper report also highlights that there will also be a growing trend for investors, developers as well as students and their parents looking to rent rooms in a private residential hall that meets their ‘mid-market’ demands.

This will be for people who do not want a luxurious experience but then again they don’t want to live in ‘grotty’ property student accommodation either.