Student Accommodation vs Private Housing
April 2011
Januarys is seeing an increase in developers building student accommodation in place of private housing.
This accommodation, which is being built on a speculative basis, is seen by many as a more fruitful source of income, as Januarys’ Associate, Graham Smith explains.
“In previous years, universities and colleges would contract builders to erect their accommodation blocks. Privately funded initiatives were almost unheard of.
“Now, however, many developers are looking elsewhere for a return and some see the student market as a lucrative alternative, especially when compared to private housing with its associated on costs and difficult funding circumstances.
“The attractions are obvious. The number of students greatly exceeds places in halls of residence and students will almost always sign up for a year. Any void periods, such as July to September, can often be covered by letting the rooms as a single block to universities for their summer school students or conference trade.
“Universities now compete openly for students and funds. Colleges that lack quality accommodation risk deterring potential students.
“Forward thinking developers are also hedging their bets and building the accommodation in such a way that should the housing market become a more attractive proposition, it would be easy to convert the student quarters into flats for rent or sale.
“I think this is a phenomenon that will only increase over time. Particularly in cities like Cambridge, where there are two universities and a real difficulty in finding places for all the students to live, developing halls of residence, bedsits or even shared houses designed specifically for students, can be a viable alternative to building private housing for rent or sale.”