Student housing is tipped to be a top choice among investors in mainland China’s property market as demand continues to outstrip supply for suitable accommodation for university students, according to analysts.

Interest in investment in the student housing segment – particularly in mainland China, 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.

A survey in March by CBRE, which collected 150 responses from its agents and analysts in the Asia-Pacific region, showed that 43 per cent of respondents cited student housing as the top choice of their clients for investment in the alternative real estate sector.

This was up slightly from the previous survey in the third quarter of 2025, when 41 per cent of respondents mentioned student housing.

“Student housing ranks as the first preference among alternative asset types in our 2026 China investor intentions survey,” said Sam Xie, head of research in China at CBRE. “Fundamentals remain 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.