A University of British Columbia (UBC) student is making headlines after sharing that he flies to his college twice a week to avoid paying rent. Notably, Tim Chen, who is a resident of Calgary, says that opting for flights to his classes is cheaper than paying monthly rent in Vancouver. He only takes two classes per week at the university.
The student roughly spends $150 per round-trip flight, which comes to almost $1200 per month (Rs 99,631). Meanwhile, a one-bedroom apartment in Vancouver would cost him around $2100 (1,74,358) for the rent.
He took to Reddit to share his experience and wrote, "As titled, I'm a super commuter at UBC and I live in Calgary. I have two days that need to go to school for class (Tues and Thu), I fly to Vancouver in the morning and return to Calgary at night. I've been flying on Air Canada for all these flights, and for Jan, I did 7 round trips like this. I found there's saving on rent since I don't need to pay rent in Calgary (live with my parents) except just casually paying for utilities, and it's much cheaper than renting a 1b for 2k for more in Vancouver."
While some users were impressed with his decision, others felt that the frequent air commutes would be too hectic and time-consuming.
One user wrote, "One hour commute isn't that bad. But having to show up to the airport so often would suck. Also, your schedule would be pretty inflexible, I sure missing a flight would be a big headache."
Another commented, "Modern Problem requires Modern Solutions!"
A third said, "Imagine the frequent flyer miles this kid racks up. He'll soon be spending time in lounges, flying free upgrades to business, sweet."
A fourth added, "Honestly doable. The flight is pretty quick and good deals on flights would be way less than rent, food, and other costs."
On Thursday, UBC's Associate Vice-President of Student Housing and Community Services Andrew Parr said he feels for students facing the housing crunch, adding that it is the driving force for the school constructing below-market housing.
"We recognize that finding affordable rental accommodation in Vancouver and Kelowna is a challenge for some of our students, as it is for others renting in the communities. In Vancouver, it is especially difficult," Mr Parr told Daily Hive.
