Hi there!!!!!!! Is it actually cheaper to rent an apartment than to live in college? Those prices are driving me insane, honestly lol.
hey there,
this is a great question.
my immediate answer is yes, it is cheaper live off campus, just because that’s how it’s been in my experience and my friends’ experiences.
for example, some of my friends were recently paying around $1600/person/month to live on campus and then moved off campus to a place that was like $1300 per person each month.
personally, i used to live in dorm but got an apartment last fall. let’s just say that when i moved off-campus, my rent was $500 less per month than it would have been had i stayed in campus housing. but keep in mind, i got really lucky finding my place.
so if you’re exclusively looking at the renting price itself, in general it is common to find apartments within walkable distance from campus that are cheaper than the college dorms (see a list of the dorm prices here).
but for a complete answer, i have to acknowledge that whether an apartment is “cheaper” heavily depends on your lifestyle choices — ie. what conditions you’re willing to live in, how far you’re willing to commute, how much you’re ordering food in. because there are definitely ways to make living off-campus more expensive than dorm.
furnishings
an important thing to consider is how much it’s going to cost to furnish your apartment. some apartments come furnished, most don’t. you’ll want to think about how long you’re planning to stay in the city — is it worth buying all this furniture if you’re only here for a few years? you decide.
if you stay in dorm, you save a few hundred, maybe more, on furnishings and cleaning supplies. but if you’re here for a while, this one-time purchase might be worth it.
maybe you’ll even get lucky and manage to find a furnished place! like, my friends just found a relatively affordable place with really nice furnishings nearish to campus. it’s doable.
meanwhile, if you were wondering, it is also possible to furnish on a budget.
for example, i was able to cut costs by turning to my holy grail facebook marketplace for things like shelves or chairs. you can also ask around — a lot of students are moving in and out, and everyone has things they want to get rid of. if you’re feeling adventurous, you might take note that most of my furnishings were picked up from the sidewalks of residential neighbourhoods and then thoroughly bleached. what can i say? you see an offering from the universe, you take it.
food
this is a huge factor that can make-or-break how expensive your living is. my biggest qualm with U of T dorms is that almost all of them require you to buy a meal plan if you want to live in dorm. bully behavior if you ask me. *cough* whaat who said that?
i’ve never had to buy a meal plan, but i remember in my first year everyone was trying to use up their money before the school year ended. one kid had 2000$ he had to use up in one month — so he treated the entire class to lunch multiple weeks in a row LOL.
the short story is, you’re going to be paying an insane amount of money for the meal plan. even if you don’t use up all the money in it, you won’t get it back. and there’s pretty much no way you’re going to use up all the money by yourself.
so to save money, i would recommend living in a place with a kitchen — whether that be a dorm or an apartment. for example, woodsworth college and innis college both include kitchens in their dorms, and give you the option to avoid meal plans.
just try not to live exclusively off uber eats like some students do. then consider all that money Not Saved 😀
area
next up, what area are you looking at? an important thing you’ll want to consider how far you’re willing to walk to get to class. are you willing to pay transit fare multiple times a week? because with frequent use, transit fares can add up to a lot of money.
in general, apartments further from campus are going to be a lot cheaper. for example, places in little italy will be more affordable than, say, places in the annex. but, while you’re deciding how far you’re willing to walk, just keep in mind that toronto turns into a windy winter hellscape for most of the school year.
*not actual footage of toronto. i am just being dramatic*
ultimately there’s a lot of factors to consider here. living farther is technically cheaper but if you consider the transit cost idk…
and even if you live close to campus, the area north-east of campus has very few affordable grocery stores while the south-west side is affordable grocery heaven. definitely some things to think about.
more affordable on-campus housing options
all that considered, i just want to make sure you know that living in an expensive college dorm is not the only option if you want to live on campus.
here are some options that people i personally know have used. these are like, not necessarily U of T affiliated, but are still university student residences:
coop housing. this is the most affordable option you’re gonna get! it involves living right on the edge of campus with around 9-13 people in a house, and from what i can see, rent is around 600-800$ per month. this is the lowest rent i’ve ever seen downtown. so if coop housing peaks your interest, you might want to spend some time scrolling through the coop house options, as there are many different houses with different rent prices.
tartu residence is the second most affordable place i know of. it is also located on the edge of campus, on bloor street. the lowest monthly rent you can pay here is $785, but there are a lot of pricing options here depending on what conditions you prefer. i know different people who have rented at the lowest and highest rates at tartu, and both sides say it worked well for them.
anywayssss. the good thing is that the housing market has gone down a bit this year so it is actually a good time to be looking for an apartment (in comparison to recent years, where it’s been really bad).
so yeah, i hope this was helpful and not too confusing? remember, this is just my personal opinion gained from a few years in the city — i guess you could say other people might have different opinions. i guess.
feel free to ask more questions, like how to look for apartments or area recommendations. i have sooo much to say about this but don’t want to overload you with info lol. good luck with everything!
over and out,
aska