It is widely recognised that universities need to help meet
student accommodation demand to secure student enrolments. The
objective is clear, but universities need to decide whether to
achieve it by providing the solution themselves or using an
external provider.
A major driver of the increased demand for university
facilitated student accommodation in recent years has been the
influx of foreign students to Australian universities. Questions
have been raised about the level of growth in student accommodation
demand that will exist in the future and whether the market is
reaching maturity. While a great deal of demand has been met, it
continues to grow at many universities, as shown by research such
as Knight Frank's August 2013 Research Insight – Student
Accommodation, Inner Sydney Market. Sources of demand other than
foreign students also exist, such as replacement of ageing stock
and interstate enrolments.
