Amber Beat Global Student Accommodation Market News - November 2025, Week 04

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Amber Beat is a weekly snapshot of the key developments in top student accommodation markets. This newsletter provides you with all the information you need to know, from new upcoming projects to current trends, news affecting students to government policies, we’ve got you covered!

Amber Beat | News from November 22-November 28, 2025

United Kingdom

• UK to raise settlement wait to 10 years as minister flags visa misuse; 16,000 students sought asylum in 2024, 14,800 more in early 2025, new rules set to affect 2.6 million migrants (Source)
• UK government to introduce £925-per-international-student levy in England from 2028, with projected sector losses of up to £330M and enrolment declines of 16,500 by 2030/31 (Source)
• Fee cap rises to £9,790 next year and surpasses £10,000 in 2027–28; new £1,000 maintenance grants from 2028–29 funded by £925 international student levy for limited courses (Source)
• University of Hertfordshire becomes latest UK institution placed on a student visa Action Plan as tightened BAC standards flag at least eight HEIs for compliance issues in the past year (Source)
• UK CMA clears Unite Group’s £634M ($840M) acquisition of Empiric Student Property (Source)
• International demand for UK business schools softens as study visas fall 10% and postgraduate business applications drop 4% (Source)
• 50 HE providers in England deemed at-risk; OfS says 24 could halt degree courses within a year as financial pressures mount, with smaller institutions most exposed (Source)
• Universities to see £425M real-terms uplift in QR and HEIF funding by 2030 as Treasury moves to stabilise research budgets amid sector strain (Source)
• Funding for England’s university students lowers to 64% of 2015 levels amid inflation, cuts and a proposed levy set to strip £780M more, UUK warns (Source)
• Unite Group forecasts 7–10% EPS drop for 2026 amid lower occupancy, weaker rental income, 2–3% 2026/27 rental growth and weakened 93–96% occupancy outlook (Source)
• Torsion Group delivers 690 PBSA beds across Leeds, Coventry, Nottingham and York for 2025/26, alongside 99% portfolio occupancy with LUNA and £1.3B secured pipeline (Source)
• London deputy mayor approves Make’s revised 605-bed Baltic Wharf student housing after two refusals, ruling benefits outweigh heritage, daylight and massing concerns (Source)
• Henderson Park to forward fund 453-bed PBSA portfolio from Alumno in Edinburgh and Glasgow, targeting 2027/28 academic year completion (Source)
• RG Real Estate appointed to deliver Sister PBSA scheme in Manchester, the first project within the £1.7B Sister innovation district on former University of Manchester North campus (Source)
• Downing submits planning bid for 1,135-bedrooms in Glasgow, including two PBSA blocks with rooftop terraces, cluster flats, studios, and full amenities (Source)
• Developer submits Proposal of Application Notice for 553-bed student housing at Desmond Motors site in Londonderry (Source)
• Paragon boosts development finance to £60M, supporting larger SME projects including 138-bed Cambridge and 100-bed Loughborough PBSA schemes (Source)

United States of America

• US eyes major student visa reform as international enrolments decline, DIGNITY Act of 2025 proposes ending ‘Intent to Leave’ rule, DHS plans shift to fixed-term visas (Source)
• US weighs major OPT overhaul as DHS proposes curbs, proposed changes come as 300,000+ students use OPT, raising concerns for future cohorts (Source)
• Most US colleges now use deferrals after visa denials and delays, with 96% linking enrolment drops to processing issues, 68% to travel restrictions, as per Open Doors 2025 (Source)
• NYU tops US international student hosts with 27,532 enrolments, Northeastern (22,465) and Columbia (20,733) follow, as per Open Doors 2025 ranks (Source)
• Open Doors 2025 shows a 9.5% fall in Indian graduate enrolments in 2024–25, with IDP citing visa scrutiny and consulate shutdowns, but OPT lifts overall numbers (Source)
• Moody’s issues negative 2026 outlook as US colleges brace for Grad PLUS phase-out, tighter loan caps, forecasts slowing 3.5% revenue growth and 4.4% expense jump (Source)
• Nursing and health groups push back as Trump administration plan caps their loans at $20,500, excluding their degrees from professional programs that get $50,000 limits (Source)
• Student housing normalizes as new deliveries drop to 27,000 beds, rents rise just 0.8%, and occupancy tops 95%, with Southern universities leading construction pipelines, Yardi Matrix reports (Source)
• UCSB advances 1,688-bed East Campus project with new six-story hall and 1,276 apartment beds, awaiting California Coastal Commission approval (Source)
• Landmark breaks ground on The Mark Tampa, a six-story 215-unit, 807-bed student housing project near USF, slated for completion before the 2027-28 academic year (Source)
• Landmark, HC2 Capital and Peninsula acquire 40-acre site in Boone, N.C. for 625-bed off-campus student housing project The Retreat at Boone, set for 2027 completion (Source)
• University of Kentucky advances $81M plan for 600+ new beds, seeking legislative approval and partnering with Greystar for debt-free development (Source)
• Long Beach City Council approves Park Tower office building transformation into nearly 600-bed student housing for CSULB and LBCC (Source)
• University of Texas at El Paso to get $108M 456-bed co-ed freshman dorm, set to open in 2028, after four years at full occupancy and 15% rise in applications (Source)
• Camosun plans first on-campus student housing with over 400 beds in six-storey timber-frame building, construction aimed for Spring 2026 (Source)
• PRC Equity Fund secures SEC approval to extend IPO by a year, expanding $500M student housing pipeline with tax-exempt bond capability, projecting $6M profit in 2026, $20M in 2027 (Source)
• HH Group enters Northeast with Yale-area acquisition, adding 207 beds and pushing its national portfolio past 10,000 beds (Source)

Australia

• International education sector warns Australia’s 2025 Integrity Bill gives too much power to regulators, risking provider autonomy and future student trust (Source)
• UniLodge opens new Perth PBSA for ECU City, holding 736 beds and set to open in Semester 1 of 2026 (Source)
• Sky News analysis warns Australia’s push for 1M international students could worsen housing affordability amid a broken migration system (Source)
• Queensland Planning and Environment Court approves 12-story student accommodation in Bilinga, Gold Coast (Source)
• Far East Orchard targets 85,000 PBSA beds by 2030 as part of its 110,000-unit lodging expansion plan (Source)

Canada

• IRCC expects to issue up to 408,000 study permits, with 155K for new international students; master’s and PhD students at public institutions will be exempt from PAL/TAL with application (Source)
• Canada issues only 80,000 new study permits in 2025, as compared to the cap of 437,000; also cuts 2026 study permits cap (Source)
• Canada reports 36% drop in new international bachelor enrolments and 35% drop in master’s enrolments in 2025, as visa and policy changes dent global student numbers (Source)
• Canada’s international student share in public colleges rises from 26.7% in 2014-15 to 50.4% in 2023-24; 288,798 of all college-level enrolments now international (Source)
• Toronto Metropolitan University to build 21-storey “Bond Street” residence, adding 1,370+ beds, more than doubling on-campus housing, to ease student housing pressures (Source)

Europe

• EU recognises student housing as essential infrastructure amid capacity shortages and international student growth (Source)
• Indian students increasingly choose France as US visa restrictions tighten, the 12‑month post‑study APS visa, work rights, and rising admissions adding to the shift (Source)
• European business schools grow enrolments by 11% this year, with GMAC data revealing overseas applications from India rising 26%, with those from east and south-east Asia up 42% (Source)
• Greystar buys 1,200-bed Spanish student housing portfolio from Merkel Capital, covering Pamplona, Sabadell and Seville university towns (Source)
• Kinetic Capital secures sovereign-wealth backing to provide up to £250M in loans for PBSA development across Europe and Ireland (Source)
• Limerick city declares a “student housing emergency” after reports of overcrowded rentals, some students sleeping in cars or commuting hours due to lack of accommodation (Source)