19-year-old sleeps in Tampere Airbnb amid tight student rental market

Gabriel Mcavennie, 19, from Espoo is spending the start of his Media and Arts studies in Tampere sleeping in an Airbnb after struggling to find permanent housing. He began hunting for private rentals in July with a budget of about €500 a month and a preference for somewhere near campus, but suitable listings disappeared quickly and some hosts did not respond. "I was somehow really naive," he admits, calling the search stressful and worrying about how he would manage financially if he hadn’t found a place in time. Most Finnish students lost entitlement to general housing allowance this summer, putting extra pressure on student renters. Mcavennie has leased a furnished one-room flat in Tampere city centre that was previously used as an Airbnb and will move in at the end of the month. Until then he must stay in the temporary Airbnb; the owner has agreed he can replace a table with a sofa. Tamperelainen reported.