24,800 new student beds enter UK market
New research from Cushman & Wakefield reveals that the purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) market has been remarkably resilient over the last year – despite Covid-19. The research reveals that there are 24,800 new student beds in the UK. The pipeline also remains strong. The national development pipeline currently stands at 115,000 beds – and approximately 58% of these have planning permission. Birmingham has the largest regional pipeline – at 6,700 beds.
There are currently 681,000 student accommodation beds across the UK. The new student beds entering the market for the 2020/21 academic year represents a net increase of 21,000 beds – with around 3,800 beds leaving the market, improving the overall quality of stock. Quality student accommodation continues to be on students’ minds – demonstrated in the price of a new university en-suite bed increasing by 17% annually compared to 2019/20.
The Cushman & Wakefield report shows that 58% of student beds are now en-suite, and the number of rooms let by operators directly to students increased by 119% over the last seven years. The private sector has delivered the majority of the new beds this year (85%) and now owns 51.4% of beds in the UK …