A landmark report released by the Student Accommodation Council has found that international students, who constitute only 4% of Australia’s rental market, are not responsible for the ongoing housing crisis, the Property Council has reported.
The clarification comes amidst prevalent concerns over the impact of their presence on housing affordability and availability.
The increase in rent, which started in 2020, coincides with a period of reduced international student numbers due to the pandemic, challenging the notion that these students drive housing scarcity.
“International students have been unfairly blamed for the rental crisis, yet this report shows that long-term structural issues in Australia’s housing market are the real cause for rental pressures,” said Torie Brown, executive director of the Student Accommodation Council.
Brown stressed that more domestic students occupy rental homes than international students, highlighting a double standard in public perception.
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The report also pointed to other factors exacerbating the housing situation, including the rise of smaller households, intrastate migration, and the repurposing of living spaces into work areas. It stressed the need for a broader understanding of the diverse causes behind rental market dynamics, rather than pinpointing a single group.
Despite ongoing developments, the projected supply of new purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) will fall short of demand. The report suggested that an additional 66,000 new beds are needed by 2026 to prevent more international students from spilling into the private rental market.
“If we continue to build new student accommodation assets at the current rate, we will see an extra 1% of international students forced into the private rental market,” Brown said.
Anouk Darling, chair of the Student Accommodation Council and CEO of Scape, pointed out the challenges in expanding PBSA infrastructure, including slow planning processes and high costs influenced by property taxes and legislation.
“International students contribute $25.5 billion to the Australian economy, and they deserve the best housing experience when they arrive in our country,” Darling said.
She called for increased governmental cooperation to enhance the availability of safe and well-managed student housing, which would help alleviate the broader pressures on the private rental market, Property Council reported.
Read the full report on the Property Council website.
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