New York named most expensive city for Chinese studying overseas

New York in the US is the most expensive city for international students in terms of accommodation, while the greatest number of Chinese studying overseas come from Beijing and Shanghai, according to a report.

The 2016 Overseas Student Accommodation Report, released by student.com — a global platform for students seeking accommodation overseas — found that New York, with an average weekly rent of $526, is the costliest destination for international students.

Four more US cities: San Francisco, Berkeley, La Jolla and Boston, rounded out the top five. London in the UK ranked sixth, while Sydney, Australia came in 10th.

The report only covers student accommodation prices in the UK, the US and Australia, and is based on the average listed price for properties on the student.com website.

It found that accommodation prices in the five most expensive cities remained almost unchanged year-on-year, while room prices in the UK and Australia rose sharply compared to the year previous, partly because of the arrival of large numbers of international students, including Chinese.

In 2015, more than 520,000 Chinese students went overseas and more than 300,000 of them headed to the US. The UK, which issued 71,000 student visas to China last year, is the second most popular destination for Chinese overseas students.

The vast majority come from Beijing, Shanghai, and Hangzhou, capital of East China's Zhejiang province, according to the report.

Their top concerns when seeking lodgings overseas are safety, location, price, sunlight and potential roommates, the report said.