One of the key criteria for a thriving student accommodation market in a
city is a successful University.
The better the reputation of the University, the more likely the student
population is to grow and increase the demand for accommodation. Therefore,
strongly performing Universities can be an indication of the next
‘hotspot’, or at least an indication of a ‘safe bet’ when evaluating
investment opportunities.
There are a number of different ranking systems that are useful, when
looking to determine which Universities are performing well. One the most
commonly used is the annual rankings produced by the Time Higher Education
https://www.timeshighereducation.com/student/best-universities/best-universities-uk
.
In 2018, the top ranked Universities were;
1 University of Oxford
2 University of Cambridge
3 Imperial College London
4 University College London
5 London School of Economics and political science
6 King’s College London
7 University of Edinburgh
8 University of Manchester
9 University of Bristol
10 University of Glasgow
Viewed in this way the rankings are not particularly helpful, with what
might be anticipated as top performing Universities or those in cities
where there are some obvious barriers to entry, such as London, Edinburgh
or Bristol.
Another way to look for opportunities using this data is to look further
down the list at those Universities that are achieving the biggest
increases in their ranking performance. Those that secured the biggest
improvements recently were;
1 Northumbria University
2 University of West of Scotland
3 Middlesex University
4 University of Hull
5 Heriot Watt University
6 London Southbank University
7 Robert Gordon University
8 Sheffield Hallam University
9 Swansea University
10 University of Essex
This approach brings a different perspective and indicates opportunities
across a range of different towns and cities, with fewer barriers to entry.
Combine this with our work on average rents
https://www.accommodationforstudents.com/view_landlord_guides.asp?id=3702
and it provides a powerful starting point for longer term investment
decisions.
