From The Magazine

As summer ended and fall move-in was on the horizon, students, universities and the student housing industry looked forward with anticipation towards the hopeful return to a more normal college experience after a challenging 18 months due to the COVID-19 pandemic. But while students eagerly prepared for their return to campus, new problems arose for student housing owners, developers and operators in the midst of the busy turn season and fall move-in.  Labor and materials shortages ranging from the availability of cleaning crews and healthy on-site staff members, to furniture …

Nimes Capital is a well-known name in the family office investment business. To separate its investments in tech and other sectors from its real estate ventures, the company founded Nimes Real Estate (NRE) in 2013 to focus a team on real estate investments.  “Real estate is such a specialized investment that we wanted to create a team that focused just on our real estate assets, so they weren’t distracted by our other holdings,” says David Nazarian, founder of Nimes Capital and Nimes Real Estate.  Nimes Real Estate entered the student …

The COVID-19 pandemic changed the ways schools operate, how classes were taught, and how students learned and socialized in 2020. Though hospitalizations and deaths are waning thanks to a vaccine, life still hasn’t returned to normal for anyone, including students away at college.  Interior design may seem like a lower priority in the wake of such a health crisis, but these professionals would argue the exact opposite — that it’s more important than ever. That’s because leasing, retention, and making students and parents feel safe and secure as they return …

There are 11 university markets set to add 1,000 or more student housing beds this year, according to data from RealPage. The Richardson, Texas-based research firm tracks new construction, rental rates and leasing activity in 175 core university markets for its student housing data. Overall, RealPage reports that approximately 42,000 new purpose-built student housing beds will deliver in 2021, which falls into the firm’s normal supply growth range of 40,000 to 50,000 beds annually. Carl Whitaker, senior manager of market analytics at RealPage, says that figure is an encouraging sign …

The pandemic appears to be under control. Students are returning to classes. And student housing owners are singing the praises of a newish trend that has not only gotten many through the pandemic, but served as a blueprint for the next phase of student housing operations. What’s this trend? It’s called proptech.  “Proptech is the entire connected technology stack inside of a building that drives value to our building by enhancing the resident experience and boosting operational efficiencies,” explains Mark Zikra, senior vice president of technology and innovation for student living …

Like America, Canada is facing housing issues that have been exacerbated by the pandemic. Apartment rents in many cities throughout the provinces of Ontario, Quebec, and British Columbia have risen by more than 5 percent — sometimes as high as 8 percent — between October 2019 and October 2020, according to the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation. Students looking for a better deal on-campus were hard pressed to find any as most universities shut down or drastically reduced their on-campus capacities during 2020 and into 2021. “Unlike the U.S. market …

Third-party property management has evolved over the past few years, at least according to Ryan Hand, vice president of business development and client services at CA Ventures. “Not only have we seen new competitors enter the space, but we’ve also seen higher expectations when it comes to the level of service and capabilities a third-party manager must offer,” he says. These new entrants can be categorized into two groups, according to Casey Petersen, chief operating officer at PeakMade Real Estate. “We’re seeing conventional multifamily fee managers who view student housing …