Record number of off-campus beds for students under construction in Ontario

Despite significant caps on study permits that have led to decreased enrollment among international students, a new report suggests that demand in Canada–and Ontario in particular–remains strong for student accommodations, with private entities taking the lead on creating more housing for learners. 

Urbanation, a real estate consulting firm, recently released a purpose-built accommodation report for Ontario that found that the province is on track to deliver 6,313 student housing beds this year alone.

According to the report, this marks the largest year on record and is about two and a half times the 2015 to 2025 annual average of 2,526 beds. In the GTA, 2,734 beds are expected to become available by the end of the year, and 70,450 student housing beds are under construction (or proposed) across the province.

Urbanation says that of that total, 10,080 beds are under construction across 25 projects, and 60,370 beds are proposed across 60 projects. 

The report notes that purpose-built student accommodations, meaning privately built housing located off-campus and not operated by an academic institution, account for 41,298 of the proposed beds.

“Most of the planned growth is coming from privately owned projects rather than universities,” the report reads, adding that the Kitchener/Waterloo region–which is home to the University of Waterloo, Wilfred Laurier University, Conestoga College and multiple private post-secondary schools–offers the greatest number of beds, with 66 properties offering space specifically for students.

The report notes that there has been a turning point in accommodation demand in the wake of caps on foreign students. Urbanation said that national post-secondary enrolment peaked at 2.34 million in 2023-24 and slipped to an estimated 2.30 million in 2024-25. 

The decrease, which prompted some institutions to cut programming and lay off staff, has fallen mainly on colleges, where the number of study permits issued dropped 73 per cent between 2023-24 and 2025-26. 

University permits fell 38 per cent over the same period, but the schools have fared better.  The report said domestic enrolment increased 3.6 per cent in 2024-25, largely offsetting the international decline.

Across the province, student housing supply equals 20 per cent of university enrolment when on-campus and purpose-built student beds are combined. 

The report notes that while students in Toronto and the GTA still tend to rent units not specifically built for students, student-specific rentals near campuses are emerging as a “latent source of student supply.” 

The report notes that, as with any other housing type, prices vary by location. In downtown Toronto, a purpose-built student accommodation costs about $8.09 per square foot, with student units in Guelph, Kingston and London also boasting premium rates. The high return on investment, the report said, has incentivized developers to pivot to student accommodations. 

“A record number of student housing beds will open across Ontario in 2026, even as federal study permit policy reshapes demand. Colleges are absorbing most of that pullback, while universities have held steady on domestic enrolment. For developers and institutions, the question is whether demand will stay durable enough to support new supply,” Sally Turner, senior director, consulting at Urbanation, said in the report. 

Urbanation said its report is the first comprehensive study of Ontario’s student housing market, surveying 133 operating purpose-built student accommodation properties and 43,411 purpose-built beds across 28 submarkets and five regions, covering rents, occupancy, amenities and more.