Student Housing

Student Housing Preleasing, Rent Growth Slow in April, Yardi Matrix Reports

Preleasing at Yardi 200 schools reached 73.5 percent in April, exceeding last year’s rate by 50 basis points, while rent growth stood at 5.5 percent, according to the latest Yardi Matrix National Student Housing Report

Student Housing Preleasing, Rent Growth Slow in April, Yardi Matrix Reports

As of April, the average rent reached $895 per bedroom, unchanged from the previous month and 5.5 percent higher year-over-year. Similar to the preleasing rate’s evolution, rent growth has slowed from the beginning of the leasing season, but is still above the average growth rate of 3.5 percent.

Rent growth slowed from 6.8 percent early on in the leasing season and has averaged six percent throughout the leasing season to date.

A total of 35 U.S. markets saw double digit rent growth, while 23 posted rent declines. State schools across the Sun Belt with growing enrollments have seen the biggest jumps in rents.

Preleasing has lately been trending in line with last year. A total of 19 schools were at least 90 percent preleased as of April, including Ole Miss (100 percent), Kentucky (93.3 percent), Purdue (93 percent) and James Madison (92.5 percent). But 22 universities didn’t reach a 50 percent preleasing rate, such as UT–Arlington and Georgia State.

“Strong rent growth is indicative of solid demand for product and consolidation of higher education into the largest student housing markets, as primary state schools have been able to outgrow their peers,” state Matrix analysts. 

Student housing investment has been on par with last year, with 18 properties changing hands year-to-date through April. The average price per bed stood at $100,857—well ahead of previous years.

Gain more insight on leasing, rents and investment in the new Yardi Matrix National Student Housing Report. 

Yardi Matrix offers the industry’s most comprehensive market intelligence tool for investment professionals, equity investors, lenders and property managers who underwrite and manage investments in commercial real estate. Yardi Matrix covers multifamily, student housing, vacant land, industrial, office, retail and self storage property types. Email [email protected], call 480-663-1149 or visit yardimatrix.com to learn more.

SHARE POST

Facebook LinkedIN

AUTHOR

Leah Etling is the founding editor of the Balance Sheet and a 12-year Yardi employee who also oversees press releases and social media. An award winning journalist, she holds a master's degree from UC Berkeley and is a native of Santa Barbara County, Yardi's home.

Recent articles

Yardi Virtuoso Enterprise capabilities: native AI, data connectors, an assistant, AI agents, and a composer for building custom agents

AI in property management: How it works, where it’s used, what to expect

AI in property management is software that handles high-volume communication and administrative tasks, from lead qualification and tour scheduling to maintenance triage and renewal outreach, while your team stays in charge of the decisions and relationships that define a well-run community. Yardi groups these capabilities under an AI + Automation suite - Virtuoso, CRM IQ, Chat IQ and Maintenance IQ - connected tools built on a single governed data foundation.

08 / 14 / 26

Which Yardi data solution is right for you?

3 data management tools drive smarter decisions

How do you choose a data management solution? There isn’t just one choice. Yardi offers three complementary choices that govern all data management contingencies.

Woman looking at Fixed Assets Manager on a computer

Fixed asset data as a capital planning tool

Finance leaders are finding new value in fixed asset data — not just for depreciation, but for capital planning and long-term portfolio strategy. Here's how centralized data changes the picture.