In a post-pandemic world where digital behaviors dominate, student housing operators must go beyond traditional channels to stay fully leased. Students — and their parents — expect modern, mobile-first marketing, and the communities that adapt are the ones filling units faster. At 10X Digital, we specialize in student housing marketing and have seen which strategies move the needle most. Below are the top five marketing tactics we’ve found to deliver measurable lease conversions backed by real-world performance and industry data. 1. Programmatic Advertising with Retargeting With students spending an average …
Industry Voices
Student housing property owners are facing pressure from every angle to maximize energy efficiency. More stringent environmental building code requirements, higher demand for energy-efficient living, and rising energy costs have driven a 3X increase in spending on retrofit programs over just a four-year span. Add to this the potential to save up to $3 billion on utility costs in the U.S. alone, and it’s easy to see why energy management has become such a high priority for student housing owners. While there’s no shortage of proptech solutions available, many properties struggle to …
Jason Dunster: The Evolution of Prefabrication in Student Housing Driven by Faster Schedules, Smarter Design
If you’ve been in student housing long enough, you’ve probably heard this before: If you’re a day late, you’re a year late. It’s a phrase that always sticks with me because it captures just how high the stakes are when delivering student housing on the semester cycle. The education calendar doesn’t change for construction delays — fall semester starts whether your building is ready or not. Over the past few years, more of us in the industry have been asking ourselves a big question: how do we deliver faster, more affordable …
Brad Moeller: Tips for Traditional Multifamily Developers Entering the Student Housing Sector
Student housing is a big business with relentless demand, but scale doesn’t equal simplicity — especially in a sector where investor competition is fierce and resident expectations evolve rapidly. As purpose-built student housing continues to thrive, multifamily developers are increasingly seeing the sector as fertile ground for growth. But transitioning from traditional multifamily to large-scale student housing development (800 to 1,000-plus beds) takes more specialized expertise than you may think. A successful push into student housing hinges on understanding the sector’s nuances — not just at a broad level but …
The United States student housing market is having a post-pandemic renaissance moment. With enrollment at leading universities surpassing pre-pandemic levels and showing signs of persistent growth, owners and developers of student housing properties are well-positioned to capitalize on the rising demand for high-quality assets in prime locations. In fact, student housing has shown its resilience to economic fluctuations in recent years and has outperformed other residential asset classes by offsetting higher interest rates and operating costs with outsized rent growth. Though the number of 18-year-olds in the U.S. is slowly …
Full-time enrollment is outpacing student housing inventory in the top university markets with 1.34 students for every bed, according to a report released earlier this year by Walker & Dunlop. With high demand near top colleges and universities – and less available, buildable land than in previous years – it makes sense that developers are looking to activate underutilized lots to create much-needed new student housing communities. Yet many sites are only available because they are challenging to build on for a variety of reasons, from size and shape to community concerns. This is …
Mahalakshmi Balachandran: Class is Outside Today — The Role of Landscape Design in On-Campus Student Housing
Picture a university campus where student housing is not just a place to sleep, but an integral part of the campus experience. Imagine students stepping out of their rooms and immediately finding themselves surrounded by the energy and vibrancy of campus life —just a short walk or bike ride away from class, campus cafés, study lounges and even green spaces for relaxing or meeting friends. Today, on-campus student housing is not just about providing a bed; it is about creating a living environment that supports students’ academic success, mental health …
Alexis Krisay: Why Developers and Owners Need to Invest More in Social Media Marketing
Gen Z is the first digital-first generation. To back up that assertion, let’s take a look at the numbers. According to recent data, 98 percent of Gen Z uses social media daily with the average user spending more than four and a half hours per day across various platforms like TikTok, Instagram and Snapchat. And this group — born between 1997 and 2012 — is highly influenced by the content they encounter on social media. Research shows that 76 percent of Gen Z has made purchases influenced by social media …
When college students embark in a mass migration from their family homes to campuses nationwide, they hope to find welcoming spaces that foster connections and build relationships. For many, this experience is grounded in the community of on-campus housing. However, many institutions struggle to house their enrolled students and understand the impact this has on the student experience. A lack of physical proximity limits the depth of discovery, education and emotional growth an on-campus experience can offer. In response, many institutions are endeavoring to bring more students onto campus, with many …
As students return to campus this fall facing concerns about the cost of higher education, many are eager to find convenient off-campus housing that meets their needs and their budget. It’s a feat that’s getting harder each year, as rents continue to climb for purpose-built student housing. To accommodate growing demand and attract renters, developers have been doubling-down on “bonus” amenities like on-site coffee bars, free 24-hour laundry access, BBQ pits, yoga sessions and fitness centers. But adding amenities like these is costly, especially at a time when property owners are already struggling with …