Student housing rental vacancies have hit a historic high in Kitchener-Cambridge-Waterloo while rent continues to rise. According to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), this year, rental vacancies across the region have reached their highest level since 1993 following growing restrictions on international study permits which have reduced international student rental demands.

“Even after vacancies [due to] federal policy changes, rent has not decreased. I don’t think even the university realizes the full impact of the housing situation on students, the prices for university accommodation tend to be just as high. Having to pay $800 for a room every month as a student is nothing but a burden and the search process can be very stressful as well,” said Swarnima Pandey, a fourth-year political science student. 

A new report from Desjardins finds that while Waterloo has the most student housing available amongst Canadian cities, the city is still 5,000 units short of meeting the enrollment needs of the city’s student population. While increased vacancy rates will make more student housing available, students note that availability does not equal affordability. 

“The prices are very expensive, it feels like landlords are taking advantage of students. The average for a one bedroom is $1,800 to $2,000,” said Tiffany Chan, a fifth-year biology student. 

According to the Provincial Policy Statement 2024 under the Planning Act, an affordable unit is defined as housing that costs 30 per cent or less of a renter’s income. Budget student housing options may pose additional pressures. 

“It’s hard to find comfortable housing at affordable prices. There are horror stories that you hear about many affordable buildings talking about bad living conditions such as roach infestations, bed bugs, mold, and just overall bad management. Desirable buildings such as Rez-One or ICON are usually above $1,000,” said Matthew Kwan, a fourth-year environmental engineering student.

Students have also raised concerns regarding the difficulty of finding sublets for the spring term at competitive rates as student vacancies grow. 

“For many years [the] spring term has been really difficult to find sublets as there are much fewer students. As a result of this, many leaseholders looking to sublet their places had to lower their charging rates and pay the difference between the rent and charging price. With many international students leaving the KW area, this makes it even harder to find sublets and further impacts those looking to sublet their places,” Kwan said. 

“I am likely looking to sublet my room next semester,” said Raunak Dhillon, a second-year planning student. “This notwithstanding, subletting does not seem to cover nearly enough of the rent. An anecdotal example is that of my friend who is currently on a co-op term. His rent is about $980, but was only able to sublet for $600.”

International students face unique challenges when it comes to finding sustainable student housing accommodations including overall cost of living, navigating Canadian legal processes, and access to curated community and university resources.

 In January 2024, the federal government announced a strict cap on permits provided to international students, cutting them by as much as 50 per cent in Ontario. Fast forward to Jan. 22, 2025, the federal government has issued another series of caps on new visas issued to international students over the next two years, further disincentivizing international students from coming to KW for their studies.

Notably, UW has not yet shared updates regarding additional visa caps on their international experience page, which the university markets as the “hub for international support and experiences at Waterloo.” The last announcement posted was in November 2024. 

“I’m an international student,” Pandey said. “I think the biggest challenge is when you move to Canada the first time because you are looking for housing from outside Canada and you have to show interest in renting the place very quickly, which might not give you enough time to consider your options and ask all the questions you might have.” 

Pandey shared that she is graduating in spring 2025, but whether or not she continues to live in KW moving forward grows uncertain as the rising cost of living and international resident policies increasingly produce complications. 

“If rent remains this high, I might consider moving somewhere else especially, if I can find a job with a remote or hybrid work setting. I think the federal policy will have an impact on me in some way since I am an international student and so, navigating that and considering my options will take some time,” Pandey said.  

UW also faces a $75 million operating budget deficit for the 2024-25 fiscal year, resulting from decreased international student tuition revenue and lack of provincial funding for postsecondary institutions. 

“The conditions that created our budget difficulties do not show signs of improving. We expect existing revenue constraints on provincial government grants and domestic tuition rates, and uncertainties related to international enrollments to persist through our planning period of the next three years,” said James Rush, vice-president academic and provost, and Jacinda Reitsma, vice-president administration and finance, in a press release. 

It remains uncertain whether an operational deficit may impact housing-related services and services for international students that the university provides. However, students noted a lack in university services and support to meet students’ growing concerns regarding finding housing in an increasingly volatile housing market. 

“I feel like they do not really provide much support to students in finding off campus housing. Most people find housing by themselves using apps like Discord, Whatsapp, [or] Facebook,” Kwan said.

Others say a mix of university policies, government policies, and landlords are to blame. 

“I don’t believe proper services are provided because the prices have been continuing to increase since COVID. It feels like nothing is being done to keep these landlords and management companies in check,” Chan said. 

“Even on campus housing is quite unaffordable. Prices are consistently higher than average and the student housing market off campus seems to be monopolized by certain real estate firms,” Dhillon said. 

Some student housing-related services are provided by the university and WUSA. More information can be found at wusa.ca/wusas-housing-playbook-is-live/.