Amber Beat: Student Accommodation Market News - October 2024, Week 05

About Amber Beat

Missed keeping track of all the latest happenings in the student accommodation market?

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 October 25-October 31

United Kingdom

• Student housing leaders demand ‘abolition of guarantors in Renters' Rights Bill’ as 14% of low-income students consider leaving university over housing costs (Source)
• Homelessness Charity calls for stricter housing controls as 1 in 10 students experience housing shortage and 25,000 bed spaces shortfall looms in Scotland (Source)
• QIP expands UK student housing portfolio amid 8-10% rental growth and projected 1 million applicants by 2030 (Source)
• Scottish Opera secures approval for 20-storey headquarters and 705 student bedrooms in the revitalization of Brownfield Site along Forth & Clyde Canal (Source)
• University of Glasgow unveils plans for 460-bed student housing development in West End, marking first purpose-built residences in 20 Years (Source)
• Bristol's tallest building to house 442 students in 28-storey development, addressing city's £800 million PBSA demand (Source)
• Cole Waterhouse proposes Trafford Wharf Development with 419 PBSA beds and 438 BtR apartments on a 2.2-acre site with a projected GDV of £200M (Source)
• Oxford Brookes University completes first phase of £50M Clive Booth Student Village Redevelopment, adding 342 en-suite rooms (Source)
• Wrexham University unveils plans for 322 new student beds as part of £80M campus 2025 expansion amid rising enrollment from 8,416 to 9,055 students (Source)

United States of America

• Student housing costs surpass tuition, averaging $12,770 for housing and food at public colleges in 2023-24, raising concerns over housing insecurity and affordability (Source)
• Student housing sector reports strong leasing season, with 39,000 beds sold year-to-date and occupancy reaching 94.5% in September 2024 (Source)

• Purdue Fort Wayne reverses winter housing fees, allowing students to stay on campus for free during the holiday break in Fort Wayne, Indiana (Source)
• Portland State University faces enrollment issues as only 3 of 46 students from India and Bangladesh enroll amid 65% fraudulent applications (Source)

• Minnesota colleges face housing crunch as enrollment surges, leading St. Olaf to house 40 students in Northfield Retirement Community (Source)
• Balfour Beatty to deliver $168M in three student housing projects, including 670 beds at FAU in Boca Raton, FL, with completion expected in 2026 (Source)
• Groundbreaking marks a $150 million student housing project at UVA Darden School of Business, adding 350 beds in 218 units, with completion expected by June 2027 (Source)
• UC San Diego unveils two new neighborhoods for 3,300 students, including a $100M affordable housing proposal in La Jolla, set to open in fall 2024 and 2025 (Source)
• Villanova University plans $75M renovation of Cabrini Campus in Radnor, aiming to house 900 students by fall 2026 (Source)
• 300-unit apartment complex for Alice L. Walton School of Medicine students set to break ground in Bentonville, AR, with anticipated opening in 2026 (Source)

Australia

• Rent-to-Live Co. launches $1 billion 1,000-apartment mixed-use precinct in Sydney to tackle housing shortage (Source)

Canada

• Forum Asset Management unveils student housing project at 307 Sherbourne Street, Toronto, to meet demand for affordable accommodations (Source)
• Canada and Montréal announce Le Méridien: 168 affordable student apartments in downtown Montréal (Source)

Europe

• Xior reports a 14% surge in net rental income to €120.9M, with a 98% occupancy rate, a 6.2% rent hike and no impact on demand (Source)
• Spain mandates new private universities to provide student housing, aiming to alleviate the housing crisis amid rising rental prices (Source)
• Metrovacesa and Vita Group launch a 519-room flex living building in Madrid’s Oria Innovation Campus, with €73 million in funding; the project set for 2027 completion (Source)
• Student Depot to open new 500-bed eco-friendly student residence in Poznań, expanding Poland’s largest private student housing network with 408 more beds by 2025 (Source)