Market fundamentals outpace historical average, according to the latest Yardi Matrix national student housing market report.
Report highlights
- Preleasing at Yardi 200 reached 67.7% in March, up 240 basis points year-over-year
- The average rent per bed hit $895, marking a 6% increase from March 2023, while rent growth picked up again
- Enrollment was also up, averaging a 0.7% increase since the previous academic year
- First-quarter transaction activity was on par with the same period last year, with 12 properties sold
Preleasing trends more like last year
With preleasing at Yardi 200 universities reaching 67.7% at the end of March—240 basis points ahead last year’ figure—the difference between the current and the previous leasing season has been diminishing. Of the 187 universities from which Yardi Matrix collected data from, 46 markets were more than 75% preleased, while eight schools were more than 90% preleased. This group included Ole Miss (99.4%), Purdue (91.7%), Appalachian State (91.6%) and Kentucky (90.4%).
On the other hand, 46 schools were less than 50% preleased as of March, a significant portion of them being tertiary state schools which have been struggling with enrollment growth. The average year-over-year enrollment change between these universities was -0.3%—significantly under the 0.7% average at Yardi 200.
Student housing sales in the first three months of 2024 have been largely similar to last year’s activity in the same period: in the first quarter of 2024, a total of 12 properties changed hands. By comparison, in Q1 2023 the transaction volume comprised 11 communities. Still, deals were much lower than in Q1 2022, when 50 properties changed ownership.
Student housing rents reach all-time high
In March 2024, the average rent per bed at Yardi 200 universities hit $895, marking a record high for the sector and 6% above last year’s average at this point in the leasing season. While rent growth was slowing in the first months of the season, it picked back up in March.
A total of 41 universities recorded rent growth that exceeded 10% in March, while 21 schools recorded -1% or less in rent growth—both figures marking an improvement from recent months. In general, schools with the strongest enrollment growth and healthy preleasing rates recorded the biggest jumps in rent growth.
University of Tennessee is one of the best-performing schools, registering 20.6% in rent growth and an 89% preleasing rate in March. Additionally, Clemson (19.4% rent growth and 79% preleased) and Ole Miss (17.1% rent growth and 99.4% preleased) were among the strongest markets at this point in the 2024-2025 leasing season.
Read the full Yardi Matrix National Student Housing Market Report: April 2024.
Add Comment