Real estate companies have started to cater to student demands – in some places, off-campus housing is as luxurious as a beachside hotel.
As wealthy students flock to campuses, low-quality student housing is replaced by upscale rentals, according to Bloomberg.
The trend isn’t limited to one or two campuses, but a nationwide shift.
“Eighty percent of residents of off-campus student housing had access to a swimming pool, based on Bloomberg’s analysis of 94 student housing complexes across the U.S. Fifty-five percent lived in properties with on-site tanning salons, while 45 percent have beach volleyball courts. Just 38 percent offered dedicated study rooms,” Patrick Clark wrote.
Investors have found a promising market. Students have long gone to college for its career benefits as well as the “college experience” and the social atmosphere inevitable with large concentrations of young adults. Time devoted to study and class attendance has declined. With the demand for better amenities provided by schools, higher-quality housing was soon to follow.
The good news is that the market responds to student demands. Public institutions aren’t spending bags of gold; though college dormitories have improved in quality compared to 30 years ago, these luxury off-campus buildings are funded by the private sector. They’re what some students demand, and they’re paid for by those students and their parents.
If anything, Bloomberg’s statistics might be undercounting luxury housing options. They only account for buildings completed since 2010 and overlook smaller properties.
The trend is concerning for the upward pressure it puts on housing prices for students. If low-cost options aren’t available to rent, poor students can’t afford to attend certain universities. If luxurious options remain a minority rather than majority share of the market, the problem isn’t extreme.
The age of a parsimonious, budget four-year degree is on the decline. It’s another increase for what college students, and parents, expect the college life to be. It’s also a stark reminder for how different the American experience is from the European, and the difficulties in transplanting one system to the other.
