Student Housing’s Record-Breaking Streak Continues
With robust market fundamentals during the second quarter, student housing remains strong.
Image by urbazon/iStockphoto.com
The student housing sector’s stellar performance has not slowed in the second quarter of 2022, according to a recent Yardi Matrix report. The preleasing rate for the upcoming fall term, along with rent growth among Yardi 200 universities, hit record highs in June.
While postsecondary enrollment continued on a downward spiral, community colleges and smaller institutions have mostly taken the hit from falling student enrollment rates. Contrary to some concerns, new students still have a strong preference toward in-person attendance, versus online learning.
As of June, preleasing at Yardi 200 universities hit 87.2 percent, up 10.1 percent year-over-year and 7.7 percent higher than in 2019. Yardi Matrix expects that universities will start the new term at record-high occupancy. The student housing market is in line with rising multifamily rent trends, as the sector’s annual rent growth clocked in at 5.0 percent in June.
Record-breaking fundamentals
As of June, the share of Yardi 200 universities that were more than 90 percent preleased exceeded one third. A handful of these institutions were 100 percent leased, including two University of California campuses, namely Irvine and Santa Barbara, which also registered the highest year-over-year growth in percentage preleased in June: 30.4 percent and 29.6 percent, respectively.
The average rent per bedroom at Yardi 200 universities increased $5 to reach $791 in June, marking a 0.6 percent jump since April. Across these institutions, Ohio State University (17.4 percent) and the University of Nevada-Las Vegas (15.8 percent) recorded the highest annual rent growth.
The student housing sector’s robust new-supply pipeline is also a sign that the market continues to perform exceptionally well, with a increase 4.0 percent since the end of the last quarter. By mid-2022, 60,000 bedrooms were in the making, up 14.0 percent increase since March. During the past 12 months, more than 30,000 bedrooms came online at Yardi 200 universities.
Head over to Yardi Matrix to read the full report.
