Column: What are we paying for? When will student costs reflect our quality of living?

Each academic year, UNC students head to ConnectCarolina to check their upcoming bill from the University. 

One of the biggest charges on that bill is housing costs.

An increase in price is to be expected year to year or even semester to semester. But, the cost of all on-campus housing for the 2023-2024 school year has seen a significant increase from last year. 

Last academic year, all residence halls stood at $7,014 for a double occupancy room, $6,806 for a triple or quadruple occupancy room, $8,308 for a single and $7,762 for a Morrison super suite per year. 

This year, these costs have all gone up. A double occupancy room is now $7,366, a triple or quadruple occupancy room is $7,148, a single is $8,724 and a Morrison super suite is $8,152.

These extra costs come at no explanation, although all of the rooms saw at least a $200 increase. They seem to account for inflation, but increasing costs are still questionable given that we are not seeing new amenities, benefits or significant infrastructural changes to additionally charge students. 

With these increases, we would expect housing-related issues to improve. But the mounting $1.1 billion maintenance backlog is saying otherwise. As of Thursday, there were broken elevators in Morrison, expired drinks in the vending machines in Koury and structural issues in these buildings themselves. 

Since it seems the additional money isn’t going to the residence halls, it must go to the housekeepers or workers, right? Nope. 

With their 90-cent raise in December, housekeepers are still shockingly underpaid, regardless of the fact that they are the people who clean and provide for almost every residence hall on campus with little to no issues and no praise to be seen for that effort. 

Perhaps the money is then going to the resident advisers? Nope. 

RAs are paid the exact same amount they received last year; a stipend of $11,000. 

So, we haven't seen improvements in the salaries of the people who maintain the residence halls or the people who oversee the students in the resident halls. There have been few physical improvements of the halls themselves. It is quite unclear what this money is being allotted toward – apart from inflation.

What’s even more disconcerting is the fact that, as it stands, our on-campus housing costs are actually more expensive than our in-state tuition costs. 

To me, it seems that part of the issue comes from the lack of transparency from UNC about where this money is going. 

Since UNC is a public university, the price of tuition depends on the annual state budget that state leaders approve. UNC has a larger part to play in what housing costs are each year, and these increases do not help the ongoing affordable housing crisis in Chapel Hill. 

UNC needs to prioritize student well-being, so much of which comes from having a quality space to live. If UNC expects students to pay more each year, the amenities should reflect that.

@dthopinion | opinion@dailytarheel.com