Mainly driven by the private sector, Australia’s student accommodation development pipeline has grown by 5,605 beds since Semester One last year, bringing the total pipeline of student-only beds to 35,605. The bulk of the supply is concentrated in Melbourne, Brisbane and Sydney.

This was revealed in the latest Urbis Student Accommodation Benchmarks, created in partnership with the Student Accommodation Council. According to the report, 11,102 student housing beds are currently under construction, with the private sector accounting for 9,492 beds. A further 14,938 beds have been approved for development, while 9,565 beds are waiting for development approval across the country.

Melbourne leads the development pipeline with 8,875 beds, closely followed by Brisbane at 7,118 beds and Sydney at 6,849 beds. Perth and Adelaide have 5,354 and 3,121 beds in the pipeline, respectively, while the ACT has 406 beds.

Despite debates around the impact of student migration and visa reforms on overseas capital last year, investor confidence remains strong, Student Accommodation Council executive director Torie Brown notes.

“The need for more dedicated purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) is clear, and the investor fundamentals in Australia are strong,” Brown says.

“Both sides of politics have flagged plans to reduce the impact of international students in our cities. We maintain that the easiest way to increase housing for students and to reduce their demand on the private rental market is to work with the sector to increase PBSA development.

“The private sector continues to be the engine room for new student accommodation developments, delivering critical beds and reducing pressure on the private rental market.

“The bulk of these developments will reach completion in 2027 – expedited planning and addressing restrictive tenancy regulations would supercharge this timeline and bring beds to fruition quicker.

“We have the capital ready to deploy. We don’t need handouts. We are a solution to housing pressures for students and neighbourhoods. We should be treated as an asset class of priority by governments at all levels,” she says.

Urbis director Clinton Ostwald says, “Projected completions are picking up over the next three years, with developers continuing to try and get into the tight Sydney market.”

“We saw an increase in new beds opened in 2022 as the buildings, which stalled during Covid were completed. There has been a slowdown in completions in 2024 and 2025 as a result of fewer projects commencing in recent years.

“Perth has also seen the pipeline increase significantly in the last 12 months as the market responds to the increase in international students and an undersupply in PBSA,” he says.

Image source: https://urbis.com.au/

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