Student housing outlook for fall 2021 improves

Preleasing for the fall 2021 college term is still lagging prior years, but Yardi Matrix analysts expect performance will improve over the summer, with most colleges and universities planning to return to in-person instruction beginning in August and September.

As of April, preleasing was at 58.6 percent for surveyed schools, about 4.2 percent below the same time in 2020 and 5.8 percent below 2019. The Yardi Student Housing data set includes more than 1,000 universities and colleges nationwide, including the top investment-grade universities across all major collegiate conferences, known as the Yardi 200.

"Many factors are pointing to increased student housing demand, fueled by students who took a gap year now enrolling in four-year institutions, new high school graduates and the gradual return of international students," states the report. "As the industry begins to approach a sense of pre-pandemic normalcy, a potential headwind to watch will be localized supply