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Bloomberg
The cost-of-living crisis is driving demand for Britain’s student halls, as undergraduates hunt for tenancy agreements that lock in the price of their bills.
Some £6.9 billion was invested in purpose-built student accommodation in 2022, a 62% year-on-year rise, according to broker Knight Frank. What’s more, £3.8 billion was spent in the final quarter, boosted by the £3.3 billion sale of one of the UK’s largest student accommodation firms.
“An unanticipated positive stemming from the cost-of-living crisis has been a change in student sentiment toward PBSA versus that of the private rented sector,†said Katie O’Neill, head of student property research at Knight Frank. “More students are opting for the fixed cost model of professionally managed PBSA as they seek to maximize value for money.â€
There has been a perception that PBSA is more expensive than the wider private rental market, meaning the general trend was for students to move into apartments or houses in their second and third years.