**Student Housing Market Cools as Preleasing, Supply, and Rent Growth Decline**
A newly released April 2025 Student Housing Report by Yardi Matrix indicates a cooling trend in student housing performance across the country.
Key findings from the report include:
– Preleasing rates at Yardi’s coverage of 200 schools reached 67.1% in March 2025, down slightly from 67.7% in April 2024. Yardi noted that this figure could be revised downward once additional data is collected.
– The average advertised rent was $918 in March, representing a 2.5% year-over-year increase. This rent growth is notably slower than in previous periods—3.9% for the current leasing season compared to 5.8% in 2023-2024 and 7% in 2022-2023.
– New supply in the market also dropped significantly. Only 35,703 off-campus beds were delivered in 2024, a decrease from 44,746 beds added in 2023. Looking ahead, supply is projected to decline further, with forecasts of 32,100 new beds in 2025 and 33,995 in 2026.
Despite these declines, fall 2024 enrollment data showed that student enrollment is on the rise—particularly at primary state universities. Conversely, tertiary state and private institutions experienced the steepest enrollment losses.
The report points to the dual influence of strong demographic trends supporting overall enrollment growth and political factors that could negatively impact international and graduate student numbers during the current presidential administration.
Analysts also highlighted that the softening market is linked to slowing preleasing activity and reduced new construction. Most of the new supply is concentrated within Power 5 universities such as the University of Tennessee, Ohio State University, Arizona State University, and the University of Minnesota. Off-campus housing surrounding these institutions has shown a noticeable decline in year-over-year rent growth.
Overall, the student housing sector is facing tempered growth due to declining supply, slower rent increases, and shifting enrollment dynamics.
