Ole Miss: Declare a Student-Housing Crisis
Ole Miss: Declare a Student-Housing Crisis
The Issue
What is Happening?
Our city is at an inflection point. Due to significant increases in university enrollment, our community is experiencing intense growing pains that have led to skyrocketing rent prices and soul-crushing traffic, which is bankrupting community members and pricing students out of key educational opportunities.
Predatory landlord corporations and property owners are price-gouging our city, and while citizens are experiencing housing insecurity and students are being priced out of higher education, they are enjoying exponential profits, increasing their investments, and consolidating their power over Oxford.
The median rent in Lafayette has risen to $1200-1500 a month, a number that is well above the price range for most renters. In a state with $7.25 minimum wage, you would need to make $24.19 an hour (the housing wage) to be able to afford a 2-bedroom apartment in Lafayette County. That is the highest in the state! This is no coincidence. Companies have realized that in a market driven by student-renters, with an admittance rate growing exponentially, they can take advantage of you. This hurts students and long-time residents of Oxford, but together we can make a change! Urge the University to declare a housing crisis! It is well past time.
Who is organizing this?
UMForward is a grassroots, student-led, community-based organization seeking to build an Oxford that supports and empowers its community. We are a coalition of students and community members from across Oxford, consisting of leaders and members from vastly different backgrounds and communities on campus. We are united by a belief that if we work together, we can build a future for Oxford that is affordable, equitable, and inclusive.
Who Should Sign?
As renters, parents of renters, students, and residents of Oxford/Lafayette County, it is your civic duty to demand action from the University. Signing this petition is the first step in getting the University to acknowledge this problem. Together, with enough action, we can positively change life for students and Lafayette County residents.
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The Issue
What is Happening?
Our city is at an inflection point. Due to significant increases in university enrollment, our community is experiencing intense growing pains that have led to skyrocketing rent prices and soul-crushing traffic, which is bankrupting community members and pricing students out of key educational opportunities.
Predatory landlord corporations and property owners are price-gouging our city, and while citizens are experiencing housing insecurity and students are being priced out of higher education, they are enjoying exponential profits, increasing their investments, and consolidating their power over Oxford.
The median rent in Lafayette has risen to $1200-1500 a month, a number that is well above the price range for most renters. In a state with $7.25 minimum wage, you would need to make $24.19 an hour (the housing wage) to be able to afford a 2-bedroom apartment in Lafayette County. That is the highest in the state! This is no coincidence. Companies have realized that in a market driven by student-renters, with an admittance rate growing exponentially, they can take advantage of you. This hurts students and long-time residents of Oxford, but together we can make a change! Urge the University to declare a housing crisis! It is well past time.
Who is organizing this?
UMForward is a grassroots, student-led, community-based organization seeking to build an Oxford that supports and empowers its community. We are a coalition of students and community members from across Oxford, consisting of leaders and members from vastly different backgrounds and communities on campus. We are united by a belief that if we work together, we can build a future for Oxford that is affordable, equitable, and inclusive.
Who Should Sign?
As renters, parents of renters, students, and residents of Oxford/Lafayette County, it is your civic duty to demand action from the University. Signing this petition is the first step in getting the University to acknowledge this problem. Together, with enough action, we can positively change life for students and Lafayette County residents.
Follow the Instagram to Stay Updated!
340
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Petition created on October 2, 2025