Add college textbooks to the list items people are renting because they are short on cash.
Students can find deals through a growing number of online rental sites — think Netflix for English lit.
There’s good reason for the demand. College students can expect to shell out more than $1,000 on textbooks over the academic year, according to the Southern Regional Education Board. The high cost prompts plenty of gripes.
“It comes to a point where you feel like you have to take out a separate loan just for your textbooks,” said Branden Scott, a sophomore at the University of North Texas.
UNT is among seven colleges to offer textbook rentals through their bookstores, which are managed by Follett Higher Education Group. This month, the program will expand to 22 colleges nationwide.
In general, a $100 new textbook rents for $42.50 per semester. Users can highlight and write in the books, but they must be returned in good condition.
At the University of Texas at Arlington, just over 4,000 students rented more than 6,000 books this fall, said Bill Coulter, the campus bookstore manager.
Internet startups are jumping on the rental bandwagon. A California-based company called Chegg lets students order textbooks online. The company has rented more than 1.5 million textbooks this year.
Other sites have also popped up: bookrenter.com, campusbookrentals.com and textbookrentals.com.
Not every textbook can be rented. Experts say books need to have a decent shelf life so they can be rented several times.
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Nor does renting always make sense. Students who need their books beyond one semester are better off buying.