Finding accommodation is often one of the biggest struggles for students starting university. This is especially true in “university cities” like Lund Municipality in Southern Sweden, where a large proportion of the population is made up of students. The demand for housing outweighs the supply, which often drives the rents up. Limited supply and high rents create uncertainty for students about where they will live. An option to obtain housing for students is through the private housing market. In Sweden, most private rentals are distributed through queue systems that can take years to reach the top. The few that are not offered according to a queue are often very expensive. The students who do not get to secure suitable housing through municipality’s queue system end up commuting long distances or moving several multiple times during the school year. All of this can make it harder to allocate enough time to studying and focus on education.
In Lund municipality, a student housing provider called AF Bostäder holds a lottery every summer. The lottery randomly assigns places in the queue for newly admitted students looking for accommodation. Some participants get early access to housing, while others have to wait until later in the semester. The characteristics of these apartments make them attractive options for students, on average, they are significantly more affordable than similar units in the private market. In addition, they are located near various university faculties. Tenants of these apartments also receive a first-hand rental contract – a direct agreement between the renter and the property owner that offers long-term tenancy rights and stability. That is why these units can be considered more “suitable” compared to others. This random allocation system for apartment units allowed Khaliliaraghi (2025) to study how early access to housing affects student performance. Furthermore, by conducting a survey, this study aims to shed light on some of the channels through which housing can influence academic achievement.
The study follows more than 2,500 students who entered the housing lottery before the start of the 2022/2023 academic year. By linking lottery results to detailed student records, the research shows that students who received housing before the semester started received higher grades compared to those who got housing later or not at all. On average, early housing increased students’ grades by 28% of a standard deviation. These students were also 33% more likely to finish in the top 5% of their class and 43% more likely to be in the top 10%.
The positive effects were especially strong for international students. These students, in particular, are often unfamiliar with the local rental system and do not have family or networks to depend on. That is perhaps the reason why the size of the effects are larger for international students. Moreover, the effect of access to suitable housing is evident in both the first and second semesters of the first academic year. Another important finding shows that students who got housing later (after the semester had already started) did not show the same improvements in their grades. This suggests that timing matters. When students are still trying to sort out where they’ll live, it’s harder to settle into academic life. They might miss important early lectures, struggle to build routines, or deal with the stress of not knowing where they’ll live next month.
In the survey, students who received housing early reported a lower likelihood of being employed. This is perhaps because students without early access to these affordable units were more likely to work in order to compensate for paying higher rents. The early recipients were also more likely to live in the city and have shorter commutes, which could increase the likelihood of attending lectures more often and allocating more time to studying. In addition, they were more likely to live alone and have a secure rental contract. All of these factors may have played a role in helping them stay focused and perform better in their studies.
This research is one of the first to show a clear causal link between student housing and academic performance. Although past studies have examined the effects of dorm life or student living arrangements, very few have been able to show that housing itself makes a difference. The findings have important implications for universities and policymakers. In 2024, approximately 70% of students in Sweden lived in cities that were unable to provide them with suitable housing during the first semester of their academic studies (SFS, 2024). If helping students move into appropriate accommodation before the semester starts can lead to better grades and performance, then increasing access to affordable student housing could be an effective step in shaping students’ performance.
References
SFS. (2024). 2024/ Bostadsrapport. – sfs.se (external link to Sveriges förenade studentkårer)
