How Do I Fill Empty Student Housing Rooms

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How Do I Fill Empty Student Housing Rooms

Derick HunterPro Member
Member since 2024 · 6 posts · 3 votes

I recently bought a 7 unit student housing apartment building. I had no problem leasing the one bedroom units, however I am having trouble leasing out rooms in my 4 bedroom and 3 bedroom units. They are partially filled. Any suggestions outside of the normal marketing online? 

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Drew SygitBusiness Member
Property Manager · Royal Oak, MI · Member since 2012 · 12k+ posts · 9k+ votes
1y

@Derick Hunter what @Andrew Syrios posted:)

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  • Chris SeveneyBusiness Member
    Moderator
    Investor · VA · Member since 2015 · 21k+ posts · 19k+ votes
    1y
    Quote from @Derick Hunter:

    I recently bought a 7 unit student housing apartment building. I had no problem leasing the one bedroom units, however I am having trouble leasing out rooms in my 4 bedroom and 3 bedroom units. They are partially filled. Any suggestions outside of the normal marketing online? 


    Have you considered offering concessions? Also I assume price per room is lower on the larger units - how are you pricing it?

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  • Derick HunterPro Member
    OP
    Member since 2024 · 6 posts · 3 votes
    1y

    Thanks Chris. 

    I have not offered concessions yet, because I don't believe I've reached enough students. The rooms are lower in price vs. the full 1 bed units. I've posted to ie. Zillow/Realtor etc, but so does all other property management companies. Pricing is very competitive. I can't go on campus to promote, but have a banner up as well. The current student tenants are spreading the word too. Any unique ways to promote? Thanks.

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    • Chris SeveneyBusiness Member
      Moderator
      Investor · VA · Member since 2015 · 21k+ posts · 19k+ votes
      1y
      Quote from @Derick Hunter:

      Thanks Chris. 

      I have not offered concessions yet, because I don't believe I've reached enough students. The rooms are lower in price vs. the full 1 bed units. I've posted to ie. Zillow/Realtor etc, but so does all other property management companies. Pricing is very competitive. I can't go on campus to promote, but have a banner up as well. The current student tenants are spreading the word too. Any unique ways to promote? Thanks.


       geo-tagging marketing on instagram

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  • Mackaylee BeachPro Member
    Real Estate Agent · Kansas City, MO · Member since 2020 · 1k+ posts · 492 votes
    1y

    Offering incentives can significantly improve your search for tenants. Think about providing a deal for those who move in by a specific date, or consider a referral bonus for current tenants who recommend a new resident. Additionally, providing a free month’s rent when signing a year-long lease can increase the attractiveness of your property.

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  • Derick HunterPro Member
    OP
    Member since 2024 · 6 posts · 3 votes
    1y

    Thanks Mackaylee. I love the referral bonus for current students. 

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  • Ryan RomingerBusiness Member
    Real Estate Broker · Indianapolis, IN · Member since 2018 · 340 posts · 144 votes
    1y

    Nice pickup with the 7-unit! For the multi-bedroom units, I’d try tapping into student orgs, campus housing boards, or even connecting with local RAs—they often know students looking for spots mid-semester. Also, offering short-term leases or matching roommates could help fill those last rooms. Sometimes it’s just about making the move-in process feel easy and low-risk.

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  • Jennifer Cloutier
    Member since 2024 · 3 posts · 1 vote
    1y

    Can you post in facebook groups - "rooms for rent" or the like and or at local coffee shops? 

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  • Drew SygitBusiness Member
    Property Manager · Royal Oak, MI · Member since 2012 · 12k+ posts · 9k+ votes
    1y

    @Derick Hunter it appears the "market" is telling you that there are few, if any, student-groups looking for 2 & 3 bedroom housing - at least at this time of the year.

    You may need to either:

    1) Wait for summer, when students start lining up housing for the start of classes in the fall.

    2) Offer rooms for rent in the 2 & 3 bedroom units. 
    - This may have its own headaches as you will have to match various roommates that hopefully get along. Schools do it all the time in their dorms though:)

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    • Derick HunterPro Member
      OP
      Member since 2024 · 6 posts · 3 votes
      1y
      Quote from @Drew Sygit:

      @Derick Hunter it appears the "market" is telling you that there are few, if any, student-groups looking for 2 & 3 bedroom housing - at least at this time of the year.

      You may need to either:

      1) Wait for summer, when students start lining up housing for the start of classes in the fall.

      2) Offer rooms for rent in the 2 & 3 bedroom units. 
      - This may have its own headaches as you will have to match various roommates that hopefully get along. Schools do it all the time in their dorms though:)


       When is the "typical" timeframe students get aggressive finding fall semester housing? Am I still early? Is this time to get concerned? It seems the current students living there were eager to sign leases in March. Thanks

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  • Peter Smith
    Rental Property Investor · Reading, PA · Member since 2019 · 13 posts · 2 votes
    1y

    We have found referral incentives to be ineffective. You can certainly try it, as every market is different. Concessions are a good tool, but be careful, as the tenants who have already leased may be asking you to price match. We do like offering concessions or bonuses to renters who sign within a specified period (be reasonable) after touring the unit. This places some urgency on the prospective renters to sign with us vs a competitor. 

    Does your market use aggregators like Rentcollegepads or Perch'n? Zillow and Realtor are typically not the first place tenants look for student housing. I do second, Jennifer's idea to post in Univeristy and Student specific FB pages. Note: those tend to be viewed by parents even more than the students, so form your outreach with that in mind. 

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  • Andrew SyriosPro Member
    Moderator
    Residential Real Estate Investor · Kansas City, MO · Member since 2014 · 10k+ posts · 5k+ votes
    1y

    Student housing is usually not very hard to rent, but that's during the "leasing season", which is usually in the months prior to the start of the school year. It might be  a little early where you are and thus, almost all the students have places already for this semester.

    It's not uncommon and probably worth renting them out by the room in this case. You would need separate leases for each person and make it clear to them they would be living with others they don't know. But it's not uncommon to do this with student rentals. (Although, IMO, far from ideal as its much more likely there will be problems between the tenants.)

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    • Derick HunterPro Member
      OP
      Member since 2024 · 6 posts · 3 votes
      1y
      Quote from @Andrew Syrios:

      Student housing is usually not very hard to rent, but that's during the "leasing season", which is usually in the months prior to the start of the school year. It might be  a little early where you are and thus, almost all the students have places already for this semester.

      It's not uncommon and probably worth renting them out by the room in this case. You would need separate leases for each person and make it clear to them they would be living with others they don't know. But it's not uncommon to do this with student rentals. (Although, IMO, far from ideal as its much more likely there will be problems between the tenants.)


       Thanks Andrew. That helps. I wasn't sure if I'm early or late with the leasing. The students claim it is very easy to fill rooms, I just didn't know when that desired time was. 

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    • Andrew SyriosPro Member
      Moderator
      Residential Real Estate Investor · Kansas City, MO · Member since 2014 · 10k+ posts · 5k+ votes
      1y
      Quote from @Derick Hunter:
      Quote from @Andrew Syrios:

      Student housing is usually not very hard to rent, but that's during the "leasing season", which is usually in the months prior to the start of the school year. It might be  a little early where you are and thus, almost all the students have places already for this semester.

      It's not uncommon and probably worth renting them out by the room in this case. You would need separate leases for each person and make it clear to them they would be living with others they don't know. But it's not uncommon to do this with student rentals. (Although, IMO, far from ideal as its much more likely there will be problems between the tenants.)


       Thanks Andrew. That helps. I wasn't sure if I'm early or late with the leasing. The students claim it is very easy to fill rooms, I just didn't know when that desired time was. 


      Sure thing Derick. If you're not sure on timing, do a market survey. Just call up some local property managers and ask about their occupancy and when they're leasing and what not. It's a bit awkward but there's a sort of unwritten agreement that managers will help each other out with that kind of information. 

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    • Derick HunterPro Member
      OP
      Member since 2024 · 6 posts · 3 votes
      1y
      Quote from @Andrew Syrios:
      Quote from @Derick Hunter:
      Quote from @Andrew Syrios:

      Student housing is usually not very hard to rent, but that's during the "leasing season", which is usually in the months prior to the start of the school year. It might be  a little early where you are and thus, almost all the students have places already for this semester.

      It's not uncommon and probably worth renting them out by the room in this case. You would need separate leases for each person and make it clear to them they would be living with others they don't know. But it's not uncommon to do this with student rentals. (Although, IMO, far from ideal as its much more likely there will be problems between the tenants.)


       Thanks Andrew. That helps. I wasn't sure if I'm early or late with the leasing. The students claim it is very easy to fill rooms, I just didn't know when that desired time was. 


      Sure thing Derick. If you're not sure on timing, do a market survey. Just call up some local property managers and ask about their occupancy and when they're leasing and what not. It's a bit awkward but there's a sort of unwritten agreement that managers will help each other out with that kind of information. 


       I'm going to reach out. Thank you!

      1Reply
    • Andrew SyriosPro Member
      Moderator
      Residential Real Estate Investor · Kansas City, MO · Member since 2014 · 10k+ posts · 5k+ votes
      1y
      Quote from @Derick Hunter:
      Quote from @Andrew Syrios:
      Quote from @Derick Hunter:
      Quote from @Andrew Syrios:

      Student housing is usually not very hard to rent, but that's during the "leasing season", which is usually in the months prior to the start of the school year. It might be  a little early where you are and thus, almost all the students have places already for this semester.

      It's not uncommon and probably worth renting them out by the room in this case. You would need separate leases for each person and make it clear to them they would be living with others they don't know. But it's not uncommon to do this with student rentals. (Although, IMO, far from ideal as its much more likely there will be problems between the tenants.)


       Thanks Andrew. That helps. I wasn't sure if I'm early or late with the leasing. The students claim it is very easy to fill rooms, I just didn't know when that desired time was. 


      Sure thing Derick. If you're not sure on timing, do a market survey. Just call up some local property managers and ask about their occupancy and when they're leasing and what not. It's a bit awkward but there's a sort of unwritten agreement that managers will help each other out with that kind of information. 


       I'm going to reach out. Thank you!


       Sure thing, good luck Derick!

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  • Drew SygitBusiness Member
    Property Manager · Royal Oak, MI · Member since 2012 · 12k+ posts · 9k+ votes
    1y

    @Derick Hunter what @Andrew Syrios posted:)

    [email protected]248-209-6824
    Logical Property Management4.9450 Reviews
    WebsiteView Page
    1Reply
  • Denise SuppleeBusiness Member
    Realtor · Willow Grove, PA · Member since 2017 · 962 posts · 636 votes
    1y

    Hi @Derick Hunter - Going short term may be a good option. Are there any medical facilities located nearby? Traveling nurses are always looking for short term smaller rentals. Wishing you luck!!

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