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China’s student housing, offices top property investment options amid pricing slump
Growing number of university students coupled with a supply gap is feeding an investor appetite for dormitory-style housing, premium offices
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Cheryl ArcibalPublished: 11:02am, 26 May 2026Student housing is tipped to be a top choice among investors in mainland China’s property market as demand continues to outstrip the supply for suitable accommodation for university students, according to analysts.
Interest in investment in the student housing segment particularly on the mainland, Hong Kong and Australia has risen, according to property consultancy CBRE.
“Much of this increase is being driven by mainland China, which has seen a surge in interest this year on the back of steady growth in the number of university students along with a widening supply-demand gap,” the study said.Advertisement
A survey held in March by CBRE, where it collected 150 responses from its agents and analysts in Asia-Pacific, showed that 43 per cent of respondents said that student housing was mentioned as the top choice of their clients as investment in the alternative real estate sector.
This was up slightly from the previous survey in the third quarter of 2025, where 41 per cent of respondents mentioned student housing.
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“Student housing ranks the first preferred among alternative asset types in our 2026 China investor intentions survey,” said Sam Xie, head of research in China at CBRE. “Fundamental remains strong with around 10 million new university and college students per annum and 40 million in total.”
Despite opportunities remaining limited for investors so far due to restricted supply, a few notable transactions were recorded in the segment this year.
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