The Dorm Room Frenzy

My American dorm, there was another
behind mine

Here in the UK, today is the start of ‘Fresher’s Week’. The week when all new freshman are driven to their respective university campus, dropped off with their clothes, taken out for a last meal, and then left by their parents. The rest of the week is packed with learning their course schedule, finding their way around campus, food shopping, and above all, drinking. A lot!

You will find, that there is a major difference between ‘Fresher’s Week’ in America and the UK. Buzzfeed is going into a frenzy over this difference, so I thought I would give an insider’s perspective. In the UK, freshman don’t have to share a room when they live on campus. In fact, most get an en suite with their private bathroom and bedroom. They do however, suffer with sharing a large kitchen, which is cleaned regularly by staff. After one year of this misery living in dorm halls, nearly all students move off campus and live in flats, shared houses etc. But, they still believe that their fresher year in student living was rough.

British dorm kitchen

If only we had it so easy in the US. First, we MUST live on campus for the first two years of university (age 18-20). Secondly, as a freshman students usually share a room that has two sets of bunk beds, four desks, and two large shared wardrobes (that’s four people per room). The bathroom isn’t shared between just these four people, instead it is shared by an entire floor of people. Most universities keep the male and female dorms separate for the first year. There is locked security to keep them separate, and visitors are only allowed to stay in until a certain time at night. Freshman are strictly monitored in America. After completing the year of hell in a freshman dorm, you get slightly more space by sharing a room with just one other person, and sharing a living room and bathroom with four people. That is luxurious compared to freshman living. Most dorms have a floor kitchen, but there is no designated fridge space.

The closet in my room

Why do we have this system? After all, Americans pay large amounts of money to attend university, while British people pay pennies in comparison. Why do they get a better living situation in the UK? Well, I believe it is because from the age of 16, Brits are given more freedom and choice in the UK (people are legally adults at 16 in UK). So, by the time they hit 18 they should be independent enough to live on their own and cook for themselves. In America, at 18, kids are just finishing high school and being thrown into the big world of university. Some have never done a load of laundry before or cooked anything but mac&cheese out of a box. The shared living situation with dorm monitors and rules helps ease the younger university aged students into being away from home. (It also makes parents feel more comfortable writing massive checks to schools if they believe their children are being looked after) Finally, freshman in the US have it so bad because they need to pay their dues. We all did it, we all had a rough freshman year. It’s part of the experience to share a room with strangers, to go to morning classes, eat weird food and study till the early hours of the night. It bonds people together.

British private dorm

What Brits fail to see in the US dorm system is that it is a form of socialization. Most university students travel far and wide to attend school, few of them go to the same place as their high school friends. By having to share a communal space, people are forced to bond and create friendships. I know many freshman roommate friendships that have lasted beyond university for years. Sharing rooms give you a built-in support network, a group to sit with in the dining hall, and someone to help you figure the in’s and outs of new adult life.

Dorm joke

I admit to envying the spacious living of the UK freshman. But, the American way has its merits that most British people fail to see. The most random fun things happen when you share rooms with people at university. I’ve gone out for Krispy Kreme donuts at 2 am just because we were bored and hungry. I’ve woken up to lipstick writing on my mirror that made me think my shower was haunted but was just helpful warning from my roomie. Sharing dorms can be fun. My university experience would have been duller and lonelier without it. So, Brits, don’t knock it till you have tried it.

Here is the Buzzfeed article that caught my attention

https://www.buzzfeed.com/ryanschocket2/british-students-cant-believe-americans-share-dorm-rooms?bffbsoml&utm_term=.ewqBW0Ld9#.ieq3KwVDv

Are You Paying Too Much For Your Phone? If You Live in America, the Answer Might Surprise You

Even cats use phones

. The cellphone is one of the most vital and innovative pieces of technology to ever be invented. It allows people to contact one another across the world, pay for goods, get directions, shop, and do business, all on one small device. For most of us, we have our cellphone’s glue to our hands (people have even developed tools to assist in making the holding of phones less challenging). I got my first real cellphone at sixteen, in China, it was a red flip phone and I loved it to bits. Since that time, I’ve never not owned a cellphone. But unlike many people, I was behind the phone curve.

It is undeniable that cellphones are now an indispensable part of modern life. We can capture every special moment because our phones have camera’s. Entrepreneurs can run a business entirely from their phone. People have made fortunes off of just developing phones apps. Most households in the UK and USA don’t even possess a landline. We just depend on our phones.

Why then, are cellphones and phone plans still so expensive? The technology is all over the globe to support texting, phone calls and data service, it no longer needs to be an exclusive club. But nonetheless, it can still be unaffordable for a lot of people. Some might own the physical phone, but can’t afford to connect it to any sort of phone plan, and are forced to rely on wifi which can be spotty at best. The new version of the IPhone or Samsung Galaxy can cost $1000/£900. The cheapest smart phone (new) is around $100/£90. My Samsung S4 mini (two years ago) cost me $160/£150 (and it was outdated even then). While cellphone’s might be a modern necessity, they are not economical.

How do people cope with the high cost? They get phone plans with a big company, where they pay for the cost of the phone every month, as well as the cost of the use of the phone. A typical phone contract lasts from 1-2 years, and it costs a fortune to end the contract early in America (we are talking hundreds of dollars). It can take people 2 years to pay off the cost of their phone, and at the end of 2 years most phone companies suggest you get a new version, and the cycle starts again.

I choose to always buy my phone outright, and then only pay a month to month usage fee to O2 (a big phone provider in the UK). My phone cost my $160/£140 outright, and I now pay $20/£18 a month for 10 GB of data and unlimited calls+texts. The most I have heard of someone paying in the UK for a phone+ phone use plan per month is roughly $50/£45. The cheapest I’ve seen is around $6. The physical cost of a smartphone in the UK is still high, but operating it is very affordable. In fact, this year legislation passed that required all UK phone companies to stop charging customers for texts or phone calls made in the EU. How awesome is that?! The UK has made having a mobile phone (their words, not mine) not a luxury, but an affordable, inexpensive necessity.

In America, I would $30/£25 a month, for a basic pay as you go plan that had a minuscule amount of data. A friend of mine told me he pays around $60/£55 a month for his plan. I’ve heard of people paying upwards of $150/£145 for an individual plan. The costs can go even higher if you have a data limit that you exceed. Why is America so different from the UK in cellphone costs? One possibility is the sheer size of the USA requires that operating phone’s costs more to cover the whole country. Another reason could be that in the UK there is more competitors on the marketplace, so they try and price one another down. In America, there is about 3 major phone companies that everyone must sign with in order to get decent coverage.

America has gotten many things right. I believe that my homeland has better food, friendlier people, better roads, but we do not have a better cellphone system. The fact is, owning and using an IPhone is cheaper in England. One solution that could be taken is for the US government to intervene and make regulations for cellphone companies that stop them constantly raising rates. The UK government is much more active in their citizens lives (that is partially due to the EU) and it benefits the people more. But, that is a subject for another post. For now, all my American readers, know that you are being robbed by your phone company. Next time they offer you an upgrade, refuse and say that in the UK it’s way cheaper to have unlimited data and calling!

How To Become Homeless With Cash In Your Pocket

Several weeks ago, I wrote about the new housing crisis in the UK. Too many people, not enough houses. I discussed my struggles to find a suitable home, as well as the extortionate fee's estate agents were forcing renter's to pay just to get into a house.

Well, things have since gotten worse. I have been told that I must pay between £250-£300 (around $400) reservation fee just to be allowed to submit an application for an apartment. That fee would be non-refundable. I have been told I cannot live somewhere because I am married. I've been rejected because I'm working and because someone deemed that I don't work enough. I've been rejected because I'm not a student.

After multiple phone calls to multiple different agents, I stopped even getting the opportunity to view houses (the only reason I could assume was because they could hear my American accent and they thought a foreigner was a dangerous renter). So, I had my partner start making the calls. We were able to get 3 viewings, but none of them panned out. I have been able to physically see 5 properties, but I would estimate we have likely called at least 10 different agencies, and been told no by every single one.

Why? As I mentioned, some agents only wanted to rent to students or working professionals, but not both. (I work, my partner just submitted a PhD) Some wouldn't allow 6 month leases. But most, decided that we didn't have enough money, without viewing our financials. Agents heard: part-time work + student and assumed that we couldn't afford anything.

How insulting is that? I might only work part-time, but my job at a top university daycare/nursery is extremely well paid. Furthermore, we have a large amount of savings. We have enough cash in pocket to pay for a six month lease up front if we needed to! However, because our money doesn't come in they typical month to month way, agents presumed that meant we had nothing.

image from pixabay.com

All of this means that I have more than enough money to pay for a multi-bedroom house or flat in cash, but no one will rent to me. I've been searching and trying for over a month and I have had every door slammed in my face. My lease on my current room, in a shared house, was up on September 1st. It is now September 10th. My landlord was generous enough to allow us to stay a few extra days. But in layman's terms....

I am homeless. 

The one and only reason I am homeless is because of the British housing market. The estate agents have unlimited, unchecked power, that they choose to abuse by denying homes to people that can afford them, and overcharging fee's to people who can't. Honestly, the British housing system makes me feel physically sick. I can truly say that if I had the $$ in America, I would be able to rent a house despite my work situation. If the cash is present, that's enough for landlord's to go on. After all, who says no to money? Brits do, apparently.

It doesn't surprise me that many people in the UK are forced to rely on social housing. They can't afford the fee's, or their income doesn't meet the over inflated agent requirements, so the only way they get a roof over their head is if the government assists them. Obviously, I can't use social housing in the UK because I'm a foreigner.

That leaves me without a house. Today, all of my belongings were packed into a car by my partner's parents, and taken away to their storage barn. I have 1 suitcase of clothing, my toiletries and nothing else. I don't even have a bed to sleep on. 

All of this is 100% caused by  immoral estate agents who judge without knowing. Estate agents who steal money by charging fee's and demanding cash just to allow people to submit applications for homes.

image from pixabay.com

***Since writing this post I have discovered this article that proves my above theory about racism in the British housing market. UK law requires that landlords/estate agents file extra paperwork to verify that a tenant is in the country legally. As most people don't want to bother with the additional work, they automatically refuse foreigners in favour of Brits to avoid the hassle. I find this practice disgusting and it supports racism.