Posted on September 12th, 2015
The Boston areas continues to be a leader internationally in the area of education. There does however, need to be new strategies to develop the student Boston real estate market so there’s adequate housing available for not only students, but other residents as well. There needs to be good access to off-campus hosing which is safe and healthy as well as an increase in the production of on-campus dormitories. There are several challenges that the city of Boston must face to accomplish these goals.
The Enrollment at Universities Continues to Rise
From 1995-2010 the student enrollment at colleges and universities rose by about 21%. This added 29,000 students to the housing market in Boston. In the future trends may dampen this sort of growth, but the need for more workers with advanced degrees both at home and internationally indicates that this won’t be the case. There needs to be more housing and this stresses the entire Massachusetts real estate market.
Off-Campus there are more than 20,000 Undergraduates
At undergraduate programs there are more than 84,000 students, but off-campus housing is only provided for about 43% of them. Each year around 50,000 undergraduate students are looking at the private rental housing market. More than 20,000 of them decide to live in Boston each year which stresses the local market. Students are clustered in neighborhoods like Jamaica Plain/Mission Hill, Allston/Brighton, Fenway/ Kenmore.
Short Supply of Graduate Student Housing
Just 8% of dorm bed built in the last 12 years were made available for students that are enrolled in graduate programs. Since 1995, the number of graduate enrollments has increased by 50%. If the number of graduate enrollment keeps increasing, then there will be more pressure on the rental housing market which is already strained. These students tend to be working professionals that enroll in degree programs so they create more demand for housing.
Housing Varies by Institution On-Campus
There are 37,543 undergraduate dorm beds in Boston today. There are more than 7,000 of them under construction or being planned for future development. If Boston was to house all of the undergraduates on-campus there would be a need for 39,468 dorm beds
The on-campus hosing varies school to school. Boston College leads the undergraduate programs and houses 80% of its student’s on-campus and plans to build another 810 beds. The second largest provider is Northeastern University, but it only counts for less than 60% of the student body.
The city of Bostin knows that the on-campus housing demand in a challenge for institutions. These school need space for programs and labs and not just room for students. The smaller schools may lacks the space or resources to create the housing needs students have. There’s also opinions on where to put the dormitories
Dorms need to be placed near the universities and colleges as well as close to transit to relieve the pressure that student renters face. There needs to be student housing density as well as close to the amenities that students need. When these needs are met, the construction of drums is more financially feasible. The main problem is that this sort of hosing can cause concern for neighbors and community groups.
Off-Campus Overcrowding is rewarded by the Rental market
Landlords that have proximity to universities and colleges can maximize rents when they market to groups of students. The students are able to spread the rent out so each one is able to afford it. This can be cheaper than the housing that they get on-campus. This also means that landlords are able to charge rents that households cannot afford. This group rate means that the rental market for students ends up being overcrowded and students have less space in which to live.