Single people cannot afford rent

Moving to a new city, whether for study or work reasons, represents an important chapter in everyone's life. Especially when moving for study purposes, families of students face significant financial expenses: just think of moving costs, university fees, and, last but not least, rent expenses. Paradoxically, the situation can become more complex when moving to a new city for work: it is assumed that a new city can offer a citizen not only new stimuli but also ensure a sufficient salary to build one's own freedom. One of the main obstacles that one may encounter when moving is finding a roommate to share the new accommodation - living alone is an option that is discarded in most cases. Two-bedroom or three-bedroom? This is the choice that is initially considered. And it is here that the scouting for the perfect roommate begins, who ideally should lead a lifestyle that can match one's own and, of course, share the rent expenses of the house. The situation becomes simpler if you have a partner: in that case, you can settle for a studio apartment (at most a one-bedroom) sharing a room and consequently reducing the rent expenses.

In short, renting a room alone has become a luxury, let alone an entire one-bedroom apartment. «What emerges from the analysis is that the market in our major cities does not offer particularly sustainable rental solutions to those with a single income,» confirmed Antonio Intini, Chief Developer Officer of Immobiliare.it, the leading real estate portal in Italy, who conducted a study on the difference between the available budget per person or per couple and the average amount required for renting a one-bedroom apartment. The CDO further added that in most cases, a single person must allocate at least 50% more than the considered sustainable budget for rent, if not even double, he added. The study by Immobiliare.it clarifies the rental situation in the tricolor country, surprisingly showing that Milan is not the most expensive city for those wishing to rent a one-bedroom apartment. For this type of rental, Florence is actually leading the ranking: the average monthly price requested for renting an apartment with two rooms is €1,066, but the budget for rent available to a single person on average does not exceed €480. In fact, only 0.5% of the two-bedroom apartments available on the market are accessible to those searching alone.

Milan has the highest rent among the cities analyzed: over €1,320 per month for a one-bedroom apartment, and although the budget available to a single person is also the highest, just above €650, it is still absolutely insufficient. Naples takes the third position, with an average rent of €850 per month and a budget for rent for a single person of €415; for couples, the budget is €750 per month. A similar situation to Naples is found in Bologna, one of the main university cities in Italy: according to the latest estimates, between 40,000 and 50,000 students from other cities live in the Emilia Romagna city, yet, the rent demand for a one-bedroom in Bologna is €925, an unattainable figure for a single person, whose average budget is €510. Even in Verona, Rome, Catania, and Palermo, the situation is not the best. The situation changes with Turin and Genoa, where at least couples manage quite well, surpassing, in both cases, the real estate demands by even €250. Following the study conducted by Immobiliare.it, pessimism regarding the main centers of the country can only increase dramatically. The opportunity to have new housing solutions in the outskirts of major cities seems to be the best solution to overcome an almost disastrous situation. It is clear, however, that moving to the outskirts entails a compromise for those who have always dreamed of living in the city center of a major city. A compromise that could be considered if the efficiency of transportation were to increase. Therefore, it is true that nowadays we cannot afford to be single: if rental prices do not decrease, the number of couples will most likely increase.