Being able to rapidly obtain pleasant and secure housing at a reasonable cost is an important factor when students are choosing where to study. Many people believe that it is difficult to find student housing in Lund. In a new joint report, three of Lund’s major student housing organisations show that the true picture is actually positive.
AF Bostäder is Sweden’s largest student-owned housing company with 6 200 corridor rooms and apartments in central Lund. As specialists in student housing, the company works for a sustainable, stable and fair housing market in Lund. Every year, Lund University admits a large number of new students from Sweden and the rest of the world. Many of them lack accommodation within commuting distance of the University and need to feel confident about the chances of obtaining housing as a new student in Lund.
“It’s a common misconception that it’s difficult for new Lund students to find housing by the start of a semester,” says Claes Hjortronsteen, Rental Manager at AF Bostäder. “Certain opinion-formers periodically warn about the situation in Lund, and this creates a risk that students and their parents become concerned, and in the worst case that young people apply to study somewhere else.”
AF Bostäder, in cooperation with Lund University’s LU Bostäder and student-run BoPoolen, has launched a joint housing report to make things easier for student organisations, the media and other stakeholders that want to present a fair picture of student housing availability. The report shows a good situation regarding housing availability for new Lund students.
“We find that the student housing market in Lund is healthy and well balanced,” says Claes Hjortronsteen. “Supply and demand can be balanced through the combined efforts of AF Bostäder, the student nations, Lund University and private companies. Over the past year, LU Bostäder and BoPoolen have had a housing surplus, and here at AF Bostäder, the queue times for new students are short. Most can obtain housing immediately. Available accommodation is mainly in traditional student housing such as corridor rooms with a low rent. Students who on admission are registered outside Skåne have priority and they are known internally as the “novisch” group. In the autumn of 2024, we could offer 965 housing units for this group in the form of one-bedroom apartments and corridor rooms – as many as nine out of ten of these were available for the start of the semester, and the rest for 1 October.”
“We have previously reported the queue time for our housing,” says Claes Hjortronsteen. “However, it says more about when students who already have somewhere to live choose to ultilise their place in the queue rather than how long those without any housing need to wait for accommodation. Instead, by communicating the shortest possible queue time, we provide a more accurate picture of the market and at the same time can show that the much referred to student housing shortage in Lund is a myth. As a student, you can apply to Sweden’s best university and confidently reckon on obtaining housing.”
“The housing report has been well-received and has helped to change perceptions of the market. We plan to continue publishing it annually. To further strengthen communication with our customers regarding the availability of housing, we have also developed a “novisch” counter for our website. The counter keeps track of the number of vacant and rented housing units for this group and counts down so that the students can follow the number available in real time,” says Claes Hjortronsteen.
Latest update June 23, 2025