New research by the UK’s largest student accommodation search platform – StuRents – shows that Liverpool’s Purpose-Built Student Accommodation (PBSA) bed supply has increased by 1,544 in the 2021-22 academic year to date – a 5.8% uplift year-on- year. The North West has also seen Manchester attract 1,095 beds.
Swansea, Wales has also seen a regional uplift by 1,481 beds, Nottingham in the East Midlands by 1,362 beds, Lincoln by 1,176 beds and Sheffield in South Yorkshire by 1,351 beds.
Following a difficult year for the student accommodation sector – with travel and teaching restrictions imposed by the Covid-19 pandemic impacting student attendance, the pipeline in the UK shows the PBSA sector continues to attract investment. While London maintains the largest pipeline of 14,235 student beds, the pipeline for Nottingham is 7,827, Bristol is 6,499, Leeds is 5,943 and Manchester is 5,578. Figures show the healthy pipelines – and ensures the PBSA offering in regional hubs continues to grow.
“The figures halfway into the current academic year indicate that investors are still attracted to the UK PBSA sector despite short-term headwinds caused by Covid-19.
“Due to its world renown reputation, a return to growth in the 18-year-old population, and continued growth in international students, Britain remains a highly attractive destination for the PBSA sector.
“In the right location, there remain opportunities for investors to deploy capital into long-term, income-generating assets that are counter cyclical. However, whilst national fundamentals remain positive, particular locations have become saturated with PBSA and investors must choose their locations wisely.”
Richard Ward, Head of Research, StuRents
Established in 2008, StuRents now have a database of over 750,000 student bed spaces from private and institutional landlords and letting agents. Beyond search, StuRents facilitates integrated online tenancy signing, payments and app-based tenancy management solutions. This unique, vertically-integrated end-to-end solution underpins StuRents’ data insights and research capabilities.
