Students rent air conditioners for 34 million VND/year, why not buy one?

Air conditioner rental nearly 100,000 VND/month/student

At the beginning of the new school year, many parents in Ho Chi Minh City are excitedly discussing the story of renting air conditioners for their children to study at school.

Ms. Lan* - a parent in District 8 - said that this school year, the school announced that it will rent and install air conditioners for classrooms, costing 95,000 VND/student/month.

According to Ms. Lan, the above rental price surprises many parents because if a class has about 40 students, it will cost 3.8 million VND per month. Students study for 9 months, so each year they spend 34.2 million VND on rental and air conditioning.

"The school only asked for opinions on whether to use air conditioning or not. Parents were not sure whether to buy new or rent, but when they arrived at school, the air conditioning was already there. After that, I received a notice to collect the money," Ms. Lan was upset.

Ho Chi Minh City regulates the highest air conditioner rental fee of 110,000 VND/student/month (Photo: Huyen Nguyen).

According to this parent, instead of the expensive rental option, a student paying about 500,000 VND to buy a new air conditioner to use for 3 years of study, and giving it back after graduation would be more beneficial to the school.

Similarly, Ms. Mai - a parent whose child is studying at high school in Thu Duc City - said that her child has been using the air conditioner rental service for 3 years now at a price of 90,000 VND/month.

"In 10th grade, the parents asked the school to install the air conditioner themselves but it was not resolved. The school chose to rent it. Up to now, it has been 2 years and no one has commented anymore, but considering the economic efficiency, I still chose to buy it once. Three years later, my child graduated, and the parents were willing to give it back to save money from renting it every year," Ms. Mai shared with Dan Tri reporter.

Notice of air conditioner rental fee collection from a school in Thu Duc City (Photo: Provided by parent).

On educational forums, many debates also broke out between buying new or renting air conditioners.

On the side that agrees to rent, there are opinions that parents buy the air conditioner themselves but cannot invest in the electrical system, maintenance, repair... Not to mention, parents only calculate the cost of installing the air conditioner themselves, not including the electricity bill.

"Students now study 2 sessions/day, the classroom is large so we have to use 2 machines with a capacity of about 2-2.5 HP (horsepower). Not to mention, the electricity, system, maintenance costs... are also quite high. If parents of each class stand up to collect and pay monthly, it will be very difficult to manage, so I think the school's choice to rent is reasonable," said Mr. Nam - a parent of a student in Tan Phu district.

Maximum rental price is 110,000 VND/month

According to the regulations of the People's Council of Ho Chi Minh City, the collection of "Air-conditioning service for classrooms with air conditioners" for the 2024-2025 school year is adjusted to increase the maximum collection level to 110,000 VND/student/month.

Specifically, the maximum fee is 50,000 VND/student/month for classes that are already equipped with air conditioners and a maximum of 110,000 VND/student/month for classes that need to use air conditioners but do not have them and must rent them.

The survey report of the HCMC People's Council stated that the reference rental price for air conditioners is 1.32 million VND/unit/month, 1 class equipped with 2 units, 45 students/class, tentatively estimated at 60,000 VND/student/month).

Many classrooms are equipped with air conditioning to meet students' needs (Photo: Huyen Nguyen).

The reason for renting an air conditioner is because in reality, the temperature in Ho Chi Minh City in recent years has tended to increase, each year is higher than the previous year, greatly affecting the lives of people in general and the learning of students in particular.

With the population pressure of Ho Chi Minh City, the average class size is from 30 to 45 students, in densely populated areas it can be up to 50 students/class.

On hot days with temperatures reaching 38-39℃, electric fans are not enough to cool down. Therefore, renting air conditioners for temporary use during the school year to reduce the heat for students during the hot season is a practical and legitimate solution and need of students and parents.

At the same time, this mobilizes social resources to ensure the best conditions for students to have health, peace of mind in studying and practicing.

The price to rent a household air conditioner is about 500,000-1,000,000 VND/month.

According to a reporter's survey, air conditioner rental services are currently widely used in Ho Chi Minh City.

The rental price of air conditioners for households is usually 1-2.5 HP (horsepower). Depending on the capacity and newness of the machine, the rental price will be different. The rental price of air conditioners is about 500,000-1,300,000 VND/month (excluding electricity).

Longer rentals will receive a discount. The above rental price includes installation, maintenance and free repairs if there is damage during use.

*Parents' names have been changed

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/giao-duc/hoc-sinh-thue-may-lanh-34-trieu-dongnam-sao-khong-mua-20240918080426292.htm