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Students With Their Own Households Spend More Than Half Their Income on Housing

The figures show heavy rent pressure that puts study access at risk.

Overview

  • Destatis, which released EU-SILC 2025 results on Wednesday, found students who run their own households spent on average 54% of available income on housing.
  • Using Eurostat's rule that housing costs above 40% of income count as 'overburdened', Destatis reported about 65% of those students still met that threshold after transfers.
  • The agency said the median net equivalised income for students with their own household was roughly €963 per month, with about 45% of their income from paid work and only about 14% from BAföG or scholarships.
  • A CHE survey of roughly 87,000 students across three winter semesters mapped big regional differences, showing about 15% live in dorms nationally, 25.1% in Brandenburg, and 27.9% of students overall still living with parents.
  • Coverage and commentaries say the data raise concrete policy levers to watch for, including expanding subsidized dorm places, targeting housing allowances, and adjusting student-aid to ease rent pressure and protect study completion.