The University residence halls and the surrounding Eugene area have few housing options for incoming students this fall because of record enrollment.
Fall enrollment is expected to surpass 20,000, the residence halls are full and the Eugene area has limited housing available.
Michael Eyster, director of housing and assistant vice president for student affairs, said the University residence halls are over “comfortable capacity.”
Five residence halls have a maximum comfortable capacity of 3,200 beds. “This year, 3,300 beds will be squeezed into the existing space. We won’t go over 3,300,” he said.
Eyster expects a reduction in residents in October, but in the interim, any student who applied after June 30 for housing is not being offered a contract.
“There may be beds winter quarter,” he said. “But students without housing need to look off campus.”
Local real estate brokers offer some advice to students needing housing: Look three or more miles away from campus, move to Springfield, get on apartment waiting lists or commute from home during fall term.
Off-campus vacancy rates are below 1 percent. Duncan & Brown, a local company that studies housing trends in Eugene and Springfield, published a Fall 2001 Apartment Survey showing the campus vacancy rate at approximately 0.8 percent, South Eugene’s rate at 1.2 percent, and the surrounding Eugene-Springfield metropolitan area at 2.8 percent.
“The enrollment at the University has reversed and has been increasing rapidly in the past two years,” said Dan Puffinburger, general appraiser for Duncan & Brown. He also said rental rates have increased 3 to 5 percent in recent years.
On average, housing costs around campus are the highest in Eugene. Springfield’s rates are 3 to 4 percent lower, but the commute is longer, Puffinburger said.
“Students are calling us looking for places near the University, but we don’t have anything for them,” said Kyle Gray, broker for Emerald Property Management.
Students want to live as close to campus as possible, said Marsha Sweek, property manager for Income Property Management Co. Sweek said she has some great deals 10 minutes from campus, but students aren’t interested.
“Students don’t want to be further than three miles away,
from my experience with them,” Sweek said. “There are some really good bargains.”