Rent in the old Acta building is skyrocketing
Students who live in the old dentistry building will have to pay an extra €160 per month for rent beginning in January. They cannot apply for an energy allowance. “This increase feels like a big middle finger to us.”
Last week, the residents of the old ACTA building on Louwesweg received an e-mail from the landlord Socius and property manager Temporary Living Amsterdam (TWA). The e-mail states that the rent will increase by €160 per month beginning in 2023. For some cheaper rooms, this means an increase of more than 40 percent.
“The increase will be many times higher than you are used to, largely due to rising energy costs and inflation,” the e-mail reads. Residents of the old ACTA building are angry and disappointed. “We knew it would go up, but this was unexpected,” say residents Stefana Vizman (21, Political Science) and Hannah Barnhoorn (22, Business Administration). “For a lot of people here, that's just not possible.”
Lina Zaghdoud (21, Political Science) agrees. Her rent will increase from €410 to €570 per month beginning in January. “This raise feels like a big middle finger to us. People I know who pay €600 in rent live in Vijzelstraat, not here.”
Service fee
The increase is based on advance payments for utility costs such as gas, water, and electricity. Socius assesses in advance what these costs will probably be per year. They usually make a conservative estimate, so people usually get money back at the end of the year and do not have to pay extra.
Earlier this year, in May, the utility fees had already been increased by €40 to try to prevent further increases. It didn’t work: Socius's energy supplier expects energy costs to be “three to four times more expensive in 2023 compared to 2022.” This consists of an increase from €40 to €120 per month for gas, €45 to €116 for electricity, €11 to €13 for internet, and €7 to €14 for the resident manager.
Energy saving
Also, the residents of the old ACTA building cannot apply for an energy allowance like other students in Amsterdam. TWA has joint electricity and block heating, so energy costs can only be determined for the entire building. It therefore makes little difference what someone uses individually.
But Socius and TWA plan to look into the possibilities of reducing the advances slightly and helping residents save energy, according to a spokesperson for Socius in an interview with AT5. For example, the city of Amsterdam has set up a free energy-saving service to install energy-saving facilities.
That is sorely needed, according to Visman. “I like living here, but the building is quite old and not very well insulated. As a result, the building probably consumes much more energy than it would with more efficient facilities.”
Barnhoorn has another suggestion to accommodate the students. “For example, Socius could lower the basic rent to help us. I know a few people who worked at TWA and they told me that this building earns Socius the most money because they got it cheap.”
Getting by
Zaghdoud does not yet know how she will make ends meet. “It will be really difficult because I already have two jobs. I should probably quit one and start working more at the other because that job pays better.”
Making ends meet is also a challenge for Vizman. As an international student, she does not receive a student grant, either. “I moved here because I could no longer pay the rent in my previous house.”
TWA is not the only student building where rents have risen since January. Duwo buildings also announced price increases last week.
