Berkadia: Student Housing Pre-leasing Rates Still Robust
According to the company's recent report, pre-leasing rates across the country were higher than any year since before 2012 as of the end of April.
By Dees Stribling, Contributing Editor
According to the latest quarterly report by Berkadia on the student housing industry, which focuses preleasing for next school year as well as rents, the industry is in good shape. As of the end of April, for instance, preleasing across the country was at 68.1 percent, a bit down from 2016, when the rate was 68.4 percent, but otherwise higher than any year since before 2012 (when the preleasing rate was 62.8 percent).
Rental rates have seen a 2.4 percent growth from the average bed rent at the same time last year. Currently, rent averages $652 per bed nationwide. Last year, rents were $637 per bed, and back in 2012, rents averaged $532 per bed, according to the report.
Regionally, the West Coast is currently seeing the highest average rent-per-bed, while the Northeast is leasing at the fastest pace. West Coast average rents are $841 per bed, edging out the Northeast at $823 per bed. The Southeast is the least expensive place for student housing, at an average of $596 per bed.
Naturally, the closer a student is to campus, the more expensive his or her bed. Berkadia reports that housing less than half a mile from campus averages $706 per bed, while half a mile to two miles comes in at $578 per bed, and more than two miles at $535 per bed.
The top university in the country by enrollment (as of fall 2016) is Arizona State University, with more than 73,100 students who pay an average of $753 per bed. Among the 10 largest schools by enrollment, students at the University of Texas at Austin pay the most for their housing, which averages $910 per bed (rival Texas A&M, also in the top 10, comes in at $671 per bed).
