Vaasa to add more than 200 student homes as rent gap hits 34 percent
Friday 6th November 2026 on 20:01 in
Finland
Vaasa plans to build more than 200 student homes over the next two years as existing student housing is overcrowded and privately rented studios cost 34 percent more, Yle reports.
The Vaasa Student Housing Foundation, known as Voas, currently houses about 2,800 people in accommodation designed for 2,500. The shortage has left about 130 students on a waiting list and sometimes means several people share a studio.
Construction is under way on a student village in Palosaari. The first 60 homes are due to be ready for students next autumn, followed by 147 more in summer 2028. The project will cost about 20 million euros. The area has also been zoned for a further 400 homes.
Voas is also converting the former Leipätehdas, a city-centre building that operated as a nightclub and previously housed a crispbread factory, into 16 studios. Work began on Monday, and the renovation is expected to cost about 1.4 million euros.
According to the Environment Ministry’s housing market review for this year, Vaasa has the country’s cheapest student housing and the largest percentage difference between student rents and privately financed rentals. The average rent for a private studio is 17.40 euros per square metre, compared with 11.50 euros for student housing.
Voas chief executive Marko Ylimäki said the foundation’s older buildings help keep student rents low, while the shortage of student homes has pushed up prices in the private market. In Seinäjoki, the gap is five percent. In the Helsinki metropolitan area it is 32 percent, while in Pori student housing costs more per square metre than a privately rented studio.
After the Palosaari project, Voas does not expect to begin major new housing developments for several years, at least not on its own. Ylimäki said the project will increase the foundation’s debt per square metre, and its older properties also require regular repairs and maintenance. Voas is a non-profit foundation, and future projects also depend on government policy on interest-subsidy loans.