Student-Centric Strategies for Thriving Communities: Insights From GMH’s CEO
Gary Holloway Jr. on creating living environments where students can succeed academically, socially and physically.
The student housing market continues to show robust growth, with developers and investors constantly looking to cater to student’s evolving preferences. Today, they expect housing providers to put a high emphasis on both their well-being and their academic success.
GMH Communities has been active in the space for almost four decades, with its portfolio now serving more than 10,000 students across 12 states. CEO & President Gary Holloway Jr. knows that students have different needs, so his company provides a lot of variety, from cost-conscious to luxurious living options, all with a huge emphasis on experience, health and their changing needs.
We asked Holloway to discusses his company’s strategy for developing student-centric communities and expand on his approach to securing partnerships for student housing investment success.
What are your main guiding principles when developing communities for today’s students?
Holloway: As the student housing market continues to evolve, GMH Communities is focusing on combining two verticals—life sciences and students—to tailor offerings and amenities to students, graduate students and young professionals.
By being vertically integrated, we have our finger on the pulse and can stay ahead of trends in the industry and know what students and parents seek in a community. We aim to develop communities where students can academically, socially and physically thrive in a safe, all-inclusive environment. We’re still true to our roots, embedding our integrated strategy in collaboration, continual alignment, and the ability to tailor our communities to meet the unique needs of our students and their guarantors.
Considering the strong fundamentals of the student housing market today, do you think that the sector is “a darling of the investment community”?
Holloway: Student housing has quickly become a darling for real estate investors, emerging over the past two decades as a reliable asset with considerable long-term stability within the national landscape. Currently, it is one of the fastest-growing real estate segments.
GMH has seen the evolution of capital in the space firsthand. Our early investments were funded by friends and family coupled with high-net-worth equity. We then graduated to bringing institutional investors to the space in the early 1990s, landing Goldman Sachs and GE Capital as early investors. This ultimately led to GMH Communities going public and growing to be the largest owner and operator of student housing in the 2000–2008 time frame.
The early days of investing in the space taught us many lessons as we managed through different real estate cycles and return objectives. Today, we look for capital partners that are aligned with GMH’s values and we are selective with whom we choose to partner. Our equity comes from large institutional partners through open-ended or close-end funds and a small handful of separate accounts…We spend time with our investors to learn their risk and return objectives and develop comprehensive acquisitions and development approaches to investing in the space.
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What are some aspects students consider when navigating the off-campus housing market?
Holloway: Students often list convenience, accessibility, safety and location as their top priorities. GMH Student Living offers residents off-campus housing that is often just steps away from campus or a major amenity corridor, making the apartments a convenient option for students who do not want a heavy commute.
Utopia is to find a location that gives great proximity to campus and walking distance to shopping, dining and entertainment options, providing top-tier accessibility and enhancing students’ lifestyles and everyday needs. We accomplish this by focusing on walk scores and have even recently incorporated Fitwel designations on new deliveries.
You focus a lot on student well-being and independence. Can you elaborate on some strategies for promoting independence while maintaining a supportive environment in student housing?
Holloway: Besides the Fitwel designations for our new developments, we are still focused on building green buildings and achieving LEED designations where it makes the most sense, but we have recently shifted to focusing on students’ mental health and well-being. We are also looking to partner with a wellness company, Spirence, that will enhance the well-being and academic success of all students by offering resources to students and their families, including a virtual mental health library. It is natural for students to gain independence when they pursue higher education and we are here to support this independence and offer guidance while encouraging students to find their path.
GMH Communities is also a member of the College Student Mental Wellness Advocacy Coalition, where we are committed to better understanding our residents, encouraging open dialogues and raising public awareness about the importance of mental wellness and its impact on students.
What amenities and community spaces do you provide to enhance the college experience for your residents?
Holloway: Some of the amenities that we provide for residents include smart technology, fully furnished and equipped apartments, cyber lounges, fitness centers with fitness on-demand and yoga studios, fully equipped study centers, onsite resort pools, campus views, fire pits, grilling stations and rideshare programs.
How often are you requesting students’ feedback to improve your communities and developments?
Holloway: We are constantly listening to our residents’ feedback, which is always top-of-mind for us to ensure their living environments are consistently meeting their unique wants and needs. We appreciate hearing from our residents and we make a concerted effort to make sure their feedback and suggestions are incorporated throughout the communities so that they can thrive academically, socially and physically.
We also make it a practice to include our general managers in the design of new developments. They bring a different perspective to a design process as they can focus on how future developments can operate more efficiently, ultimately benefiting students as well.
What type of student housing properties do you continue to see high demand for this year?
Holloway: We’re continuing to see increased demand for on- and off-campus student housing across the U.S. Recent surveys have shown that housing for graduate students is becoming a popular asset for prospective students looking to continue their education. Student housing options close to campuses that cater to students aged 21 and older are few and far between, but GMH is working to increase supply with our GMH Innovative Living developments. These 21+ communities are built around medical and higher education campuses and their amenities are open 24/7, which makes them competitive options for graduate, medical and doctoral students.
In addition to focusing on graduate housing through our innovative living brand, we are focused on ways to make our undergraduate housing properties more affordable. We are consistently building more efficient buildings, purchasing older properties and renovating them into renowned student housing offerings and offering a variety of floorplans for students with different wants and needs.
