International students splash out £600m in rent on flats in London
London’s international student population is contributing £600m in rent to the capital, new research shows, with some of the wealthiest students spending three times the average UK worker on their home.
The student property sector has boomed in recent years thanks to rising student numbers and an undersupply of flats to house them, with UK and overseas institution investors flocking to gain exposure to the market.
There are now more than 107,000 international students studying in London, with applications from students overseas up 18 per cent since 2010, lettings specialist E J Harris said.
The firm has used its own data and figures from the government’s Higher Education Statistics Agency to look at where students choose to live and how much they spend in the private rental sector.
Overall, they spend £1.32bn on tuition fees and £1.36bn on accommodation and subsistence, including £600m on private lets or halls of residence costs.
The wealthiest come from China, Thailand, Russia, Nigeria and Malaysia, with students spending up to £1,500 per week for a flat in Knightsbridge or Mayfair.
This amounts to £72,000 per year, which is almost three times the average annual British wage of £26,500 per year, E J Harris said.