Cape Town - A once thriving industry has hit a low lately as student accommodation has become less in demand, with the market yet to reach pre-pandemic levels, while also transitioning to more first-time buyers and those seeking affordable investments.
Kevin Jacobs, the Broker of RE/MAX Cape Town in the Southern Suburbs, said the student accommodation market took a big hit with the pandemic.
“People’s lifestyles have changed and the student accommodation market has taken a big knock. Before the pandemic we had many parents looking to purchase accommodation for their children,” he said.
Adrian Goslett, regional director and CEO of RE/MAX of Southern Africa, says sales have moved away from students.
“Our network’s sales volumes remain at record highs following the pandemic, which means homes are still selling, but they simply are not being used as much for student accommodation,” he said.
New student developments that emerged in areas such as Wynberg and Observatory, in the hopes of attracting more students, are instead being sold to first-time buyers.
Jacobs said they expected a bounce back in the student market after the pandemic and that these new developments would attract more interest from students.
Jacques Meredith from RE/MAX Premier expects an increase in student accommodation.
“I think we’re going to see a huge rush for student accommodation (rentals and sales) towards the latter part of this year, especially in the first two to three months of next year, as a larger degree of normality returns,” he said.
The lack of property for student accommodation cannot be explained. It is likely students are either living in university residences or working remotely and only once things revert to normality, will the need for student accommodation increase again.
matthew.petersen@inl.co.za