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ARTICLE · 23 OCTOBER 2026

PBSA For Gen Z – A Future Founded On Flexibility

McDermott Will & Schulte
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Purpose-built student accommodation in Europe has evolved from alternative real estate to an established institutional asset class, but affordability pressures are forcing the industry to rethink its approach. As the market matures, investors face a more nuanced question: not whether to invest in PBSA, but how to future-proof developments by building optionality into assets that can serve students, graduates, and young professionals across their lifecycle.

GlobalReal Estate and Construction
Darren Rogers
Darren Rogers
Devina Rana
Devina Rana
Hannah Guest
Hannah Guest
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Overview

In Europe, purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) has moved from alternative real estate to an established institutional asset class, prized as a defensive, counter-cyclical proposition. Affordability pressure is now testing that reputation, and the more interesting question for investors is no longer whether to invest in PBSA, but what PBSA becomes next.

In depth

A thesis that still holds

For much of the last decade, the investment thesis for PBSA has been reassuringly simple, with growing student populations, insufficient purpose-built supply, and an ageing private rental stock creating a structural imbalance that institutional capital is well placed to address.

That thesis remains compelling. Student housing ranks third (behind data centres and new energy infrastructure) among all European real estate sectors for investment and development prospects in PwC and ULI’s Emerging Trends in Real Estate Europe 2026. PBSA investment increased by 52% in 2025, with more

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