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Student Housing National Reports
Information is developed through a combination of original research studies, and reference to secondary sources. Our manner of resourcing and compiling information is defined within this section.
Student Housing National Reports
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Matrix Student Housing National Report-June 2026
Preleasing reached 78% in May and remains ahead of last year's pace, but continues to lag the stronger cycles of 2022–2024. Rent growth has improved in recent months, but leasing challenges remain. Read about these trends and more in the June Student Housing National Report.
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Matrix Student Housing National Report-May 2026
Student housing preleasing remains ahead of last year but has begun to trail the stronger leasing pace recorded from 2022 through 2024, reflecting a more competitive environment heading into the summer. At the same time, rent growth showed signs of stabilization in April, with the first back-to-back monthly acceleration since early 2023.
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Matrix Student Housing National Report-April 2026
Preleasing remains ahead of previous year's final levels but is starting to trail early-season estimates from the last two years. Rent growth remains well-below the historic average as commentary from the recent Interface conference indicates a shift in renter behavior in the AI era. New supply and increasing competition from a weak competitive multifamily have also forced rent declines in some markets where average rent per bed has returned to 2022-2023 levels.
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Matrix Student Housing National Report-March 2026
Preleasing remains ahead of prior years at 58.6% in February but is likely to be revised downward and trail previous March report estimates. At the same time, rent growth continues to decelerate as supply pressures weigh on performance.
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Matrix Student Housing National Report-February 2026
Early preleasing estimates for AY 2026–2027 suggest a pace similar to last year's, with January preleasing for the Yardi 200 reaching 52.3%. However, performance varies widely by market and remains closely tied to recent and upcoming supply. Rent growth has continued to decelerate sharply, with average rent per bed down slightly year-over-year in January. Although a few markets that struggled last year have shown improvement, the deceleration in rent growth has been widespread and pronounced across major student housing markets, many of which are seeing declines this year.
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Matrix Student Housing National Report-October 2025
Student housing fundamentals remained strong in 2025, with Yardi 200 occupancy rising to 95.1%, the second-highest level since 2019, driven by recoveries in a number of markets. Rent growth continued to decelerate, averaging 2.5% for the leasing season after two years of rapid gains as most markets saw slower growth amid a more competitive leasing environment.
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Matrix Student Housing National Report-September 2025
Preleasing for the Yardi 200 schools reached 93.7% in August 2025, slightly above final occupancy last year and well ahead of August 2024 levels, signaling another strong year for student housing demand. Rent growth, however, has slowed to just 1.1% year-over-year, down from stronger growth in prior leasing cycles, with many large markets seeing rents decline late in the season. Rent growth has averaged 2.7% for the 2025-2026 leasing season, down from 5.7% last year and 6.9% the year before.
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Matrix Student Housing National Report-August 2025
Preleasing for the Yardi 200 hit 89.9% in July 2025, ahead of last year, though performance varied by school. Advertised rent growth decelerated to 0.9% year-over-year, with rates down from their March peak as operators in some markets reduced prices to fill remaining beds. While some schools, like Ole Miss and Mizzou, posted double-digit rent gains, many others experienced rent declines, particularly those facing new-supply pressure or heightened competition from conventional multifamily.
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Matrix Student Housing National Report-July 2025
Student housing preleasing reached 85.3% in June across Yardi 200 markets, ahead of the past two years, with 50 schools already over 90% preleased. However, rent growth continued to decelerate, rising just 1.3% year-over-year—the slowest pace since 2021. Markets with limited new supply and growing enrollment are seeing the greatest rent gains, while new deliveries and competition from the conventional apartment sector are impacting other locations.
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Matrix Student Housing National Report-June 2025
Preleasing at Yardi 200 schools reached 79.9% in May 2025, slightly ahead of last year. However, rent growth has stalled at 2.1%, its lowest rate since 2021. Operators are filling beds but struggling to push rates higher, especially in larger, oversupplied markets or urban markets with competition from a weakened conventional multifamily market. Enrollment growth faces mounting headwinds from demographic shifts, funding risks and international visa issues.
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Matrix Student Housing National Report May 2025
Student housing preleasing for the Yardi 200 reached 73.2% in April 2025. While that was slightly above last year, operators are reporting a tougher lease-up season, including rent cuts in some markets. Overall, advertised rent growth slowed to 2% year-over-year, with April marking the first month-over-month rent decline since August 2024. Development is down due to higher costs, with fewer beds expected through 2027. While top-tier schools remain strong, those in weaker multifamily markets and those facing new supply are experiencing more pressure.
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Matrix Student Housing National Report-May 2025
Student housing preleasing for the Yardi 200 reached 73.2% in April 2025. While that was slightly above last year, operators are reporting a tougher lease-up season, including rent cuts in some markets. Overall, rent growth slowed to 2% year-over-year, with April marking the first month-over-month rent decline since August 2024. Development is down due to higher costs, with fewer beds expected through 2027. While top-tier schools remain strong, those in weaker multifamily markets and those facing new supply are experiencing more pressure.
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Matrix Student Housing National Report-April 2025
Preleasing for the Yardi 200 schools averaged 67.1% in March 2025, just behind the level reported a year ago, with rent growth decelerating to 2.5%. Rent growth has averaged 3.9% this leasing season, compared to 5.8% in 2023-2024 and 7% in 2022-2023. Preleasing and rent growth are slowing most noticeably in large student housing markets with new supply under construction.
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Matrix Student Housing National Report-February 2025
Preleasing for the Yardi 200 schools reached 54.6% in January 2025, ahead of last year, but is expected to decrease as more data is added. Rent growth slowed to 3.4% YoY, signaling a cooling market. Strong enrollment growth and reduced new supply of student housing should support solid performance moving forward.
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Matrix Student Housing National Report-January 2025
Preleasing reached 47.1% in December 2024 for the Yardi 200 schools, ahead of trended 39.7% in December 2023 but on par with the preleasing pace at this time last year. However, rent growth has slowed, with operators in certain markets growing more conservative but the sector continuing to benefit from accelerating enrollment growth and a reduced supply pipeline.
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Matrix Student Housing National Report-October 2024
The student housing industry wrapped up a stellar leasing season with more than half of the Yardi 200 schools achieving at least 95% occupancy. Rent growth slowed to 4.2% by September but has averaged 5.8% throughout the leasing season, thanks to stronger rent growth early in the leasing season, when most beds preleased. That compared to 6.8% growth last year.
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Matrix Student Housing National Report-September 2024
Surveyed preleasing for the Yardi 200 reached 92.9% in August 2024, 20 basis points ahead of August 2023, as many markets welcomed student tenants back during the month. Rent growth slipped to 4%, as properties strove to fill up late in the leasing season, but has averaged 5.8% since October 2023.
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Matrix Student Housing National Report-August 2024
Surveyed preleasing for the Yardi 200 schools reached 89.2% in July 2024, falling slightly behind July 2023 after leading for most of the leasing season last year, while advertised rent growth slowed to 4.7% from close to 7% early in the leasing season. Preleasing is still noticeably ahead of its pre-pandemic trend and rent growth is well above conventional multifamily, thanks to favorable supply-demand fundamentals.