According to UCAS, a record number of 18-year-old students (8,140) managed to secure their university places through clearing in 2023, up from 33,280 in 2022 – a rise of nearly 15%.
This proportion represented 14% of the total 18-year-old student accepted places of 270,350. The total places secured through clearing were 67,990, a proportion of just over 10% of all student applications in 2023.
Now, according to AREA, clearing figures are set to rise again in 2024, and likely to be a positive factor in the PBSA market as the period for bookings takes hold after results day.
“Whilst international students have dropped off over the last 18 months in the UK, the country’s higher end student accommodation continues to do well as the flight to quality continues. We expect Clearing to have a big positive impact on PBSA over the coming weeks post A-level results, which will bring a sigh of relief to schemes who haven’t seen the leasing velocity of previous years and new schemes hoping to achieve their opening occupancy targets.
“With a majority UK Government now in place and hopefully further clarity over immigration and further education VISAs coming soon, we may see a return of overseas bookings in UK – particularly if social unrest can be tackled quickly.
“In the meantime, perhaps as a result of international students choosing other locations, we have seen higher proportions of overseas bookings for our European assets. In Denmark, 92% of bookings for the coming academic year are international, 66% in the Netherlands, c. 60% in Ireland and Portugal and 40% Spain, all up on the years prior.”
Darren Gardner, COO, Nido Living
It is likely that more students outperforming expected results will use clearing to access better universities. In 2023, 32% found a place in clearing after declining their original firm choice, more than the 30% who didn’t meet the terms of their offer.
Thus, late bookings are likely to soar in the coming weeks, which will support PBSA performance.
“For the UK PBSA market, University Clearing remains important for a number of reasons. Whilst the core university cities of London, Birmingham, Bristol and Manchester continue to see demand far outweighing supply of student property, other UK locations such as Edinburgh, Nottingham, and Exeter have struggled more than expected with the speed of lease-up.
“It is now fairly clear that International students have been put off by an unclear political stance on immigration and VISAs. A position exacerbated by the removal of dependant visas early in the year. Perhaps less publicised but equally as important to PBSA demand, has been the rising cost of living for international students, thanks to the strength of Stirling in recent months. If you take Nigeria as an example market, 12 months ago £1 GBP was worth N972 Nigerian Naria, now it is N2040. An increase of +110%. Having granted over 42,000 student visas in 2023 for Nigerian nationals, all data sources signal a reduction will be seen this year.
“As of July 2024, Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) issuance, an essential document from the Home Office for a successful Student visa application, was down by 42% year-on-year. Deposit payments were also down by 39% year-on-year. While Clearing will hopefully balance this dip in international demand, providers should start thinking ahead to the next academic cycle and take a forensic look at their booking and leasing journeys, their operational budgets, risks and opportunities, and strategies to ensure they continue to achieve core occupancy for their assets, regardless of the clearing window.”
Matthew Neal, Director, Alternative Real Estate Advisors
Recently TheEword released its 2024 UK PBSA Marketing Report, outlining what influences students who are looking for student accommodation.
With 26 questions asked, each respondent was able to select up to three answers from each category to indicate their feelings around how they make the huge decision of where they are going to live during their studies.
