Student housing investment doubles

UK: Investment in student housing more than doubled last year as it emerged as a relative safe haven despite declining numbers of students.


A record £2.7bn was invested in 2012, a 125pc increase on 2011 according to property agent CBRE. This was despite the number of applicants for the 2012-13 academic year falling 6.6pc to 653,600 according to UCAS figures.

“Although the number of student applications and acceptances fell in 2012, capital committed to the sector has grown dramatically over the last 12 months,” said Jo Winchester, head of student advisory at CBRE.
“The marker is increasingly dominated by specialist student funds and developers, who are deploying large amounts of capital in the regions as well as within London, making student accommodation a healthy sector nationally.

- Telegraph.co.uk