in Rome the offer has more than doubled

In March they found themselves paying overnight for very expensive rooms that were no longer needed. With universities closed and the transition to distance education, many students have returned to their home cities. Others have been trapped in their apartments with the sole objective of leaving as soon as possible. Most of those with jobs to pay for their expenses saw it go to nothing within a few hours due to the closure. Economic support from the government was scant, if not non-existent. This is how thousands of external students, in September that is about to start, will prefer to continue studying from home while they wait to understand what will happen in the coming months. From San Lorenzo to Ostiense, from Pigneto to Piazza Bologna, in many university districts hundreds of houses are destined to remain empty, waiting even a few weeks. This also applies to off-site workers, many of whom still work smart today.

Photographing the situation is the Immobiliare.it study office, one of the main sites for advertisements for the sale and rental of apartments. An analysis published in late August shows that 2020 records an increase in the supply of rental apartments for students and outside workers, with peaks reaching 290 percent across the country. Nationally, the availability of rooms compared to 2019 has more than doubled (+ 149%). This, for the analysis prepared by Immobiliare.it, means one thing: “Covid-19 had the side effect of emptying rooms generally rented to students and external workers.” Carlo Giordano, CEO of Immobiliare.it comments: “Students and workers who chose transitional housing solutions, such as a single room or a bed in a double room, in many cases preferred to temporarily leave the cities, in favor of larger and savings on rent. “

In this sense, Rome has seen its offer double with an increase of 130 percent although in other cities the impact was greater. In Milan, for example, the offer grew by 290% and in Bologna by 270%.
In this context, it must be specified, the demand has not been eliminated, explains the analysis of Immobiliare.it, which speaks of “seasonal adjustment of applications”. In Rome, demand for single rooms and beds increased by 23 percent compared to 2019. In Milan, by 25 percent, in Bologna by 35. “This year we see an increase almost everywhere in August compared to the demand habitual of this period, an indication that there is interest “, explains Giordano,” but it is stagnant, waiting to understand the scenarios that will be glimpsed “.

Meanwhile, the increase in demand has had the effect of freezing prices, without causing a collapse. “The year-on-year comparison reveals that in the face of a peak in supply, prices remain stable for now,” continues Carlo Giordano. “The real estate market is slower than others to absorb the reaction from external events, such as Covid-19, and it is too early to say whether there will also be an impact on the price of rooms for rent.”