Editorial
INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS ADDING TO HOUSING SUPPLY ISSUES
As international student enrolments rise, more student housing in need to accommodate this growing population.
cent). Despite this large jump in student numbers, activity continues to still be behind 2019 results, however, there has been a movement towards NSW over Victoria with recovery occurring quicker in the more northern state. NSW is now home to the bulk of the student population, while markets such as Queensland, WA and SA have also increased their representation. While student numbers were higher prior to COVID-19, so too was our development of purpose built student housing. The rise of offshore investors into this space saw a strong uptick in development both on-campus and private facilities. Many groups came to Australia to capitalise on this need, however, have been quiet over the last few years. Construction starts were at their highest in 2019 where 8,000 units commenced across 22 projects, the bulk located in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide, with some of the first purpose built facilities in Perth also coming online. With the tap turning back on
Vanessa Rader Head of Commercial Research Ray White Commercial
There have been 648,700 international student enrolments across Australia this year, a 27 pr cent increase on the same time last year. After China banned foreign university online courses earlier this year, we saw a remarkable increase in the number of international visas and subsequent enrolments in Australian courses. The Chinese foreign student population is the largest in the country, representing 22 per cent of all international students, followed by India (16 per cent) and Nepal (9 per
18 – September / October 2023
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