[HDNG]IN COLLEGE:[EHDNG][PARA][GRPH]A2[EGRPH][STAT][BULL] Catered: 25% [BULL] Cost: £51 (31wks) [BULL] Self-catering: 9% [BULL] Cost: £28-£45 (42wks)[ESTAT][PARA][BOLD]Availability: [EBOLD]All 1st years are guaranteed accommodation in halls, after which only about 15% of students live in.  There are 16 halls (with 2 more planned), including 5 catered halls, 1 on campus, 3 about 2 miles out and another on the coast (about 4 miles away) with a free bus service, morning and evening. [ITAL] The standard's pretty good[EITAL]; mostly single rooms and bars, gardens and recreational facilities.  One of these halls, Aberdare, is female only.[PARA][ITAL]The newer halls are better yet[EITAL] - 5 built in the last 2 years.  They're self-catering and 1,500 rooms have a bathroom [ITAL]en suite[EITAL], but there are twice as many applicants for these rooms as places.  The fact that they're a bit more expensive than the usual self-catering halls (single rooms with kitchen and bathroom shared between about 5) hasn't dented demand.   The self-catering halls are based in two principal complexes: Cartwright Court (10 mins walk from the campus but convenient for the city amenities) and the larger Tal-y-Bont (Field Hall, further out by the river with [ITAL]excellent [EITAL]facilities).  There are 26 flats for married couples, but apart from this, there is no shared accommodation.[PARA]Plans are afoot to provide housing for a further 1,240 students by September 1995 (at a cost of £13million) to accommodate the University's expanding numbers.[PARA][BOLD]Catering: [EBOLD]In addition to the shared kitchens, some of the self-catered halls have snack bars in the common rooms.  In catered halls, breakfast and evening meals during the week are in the cost as are breakfast and lunch on a Sunday.  On Saturday, though, students fend for themselves or starve.[PARA][BOLD]Car parking: [EBOLD]There's limited parking and cars need permits.[HDNG]EXTERNALLY:[EHDNG][PARA][STAT][BULL] Renting: 60% [BULL] Ave rent: £35[ESTAT][PARA][BOLD]Availability: [EBOLD]It's quite difficult to find appropriate housing although the search is least hopeless on the north side of town (eg the Cathays ghetto and Roath) in shared houses and flats.  [PUSH]push[EPUSH][ITAL] recommends avoiding Ely and [EITAL]nearby [ITAL]Riverside (none too safe and none too near).  Splott looks brilliant as an address, but, again, it's a hell of a hike.[EITAL][PARA][PARA][BOLD]Housing help: [EBOLD]The University operates an Accommodation Office with 2 full time staff who provide vacancy and landlord lists.  They also help students get legal advice.