Invest in student housing the REIT way

Posted Feb 26th 2008 6:31PM by Zac Bissonnette
Filed under: Housing

I recently read an excellent book that makes the case for a long-term bull market in student housing: Michael Zaransky's Profit By Investing in Student Housing: Cash in on the Campus Housing Shortage.

Unfortunately, many investors lack the resources (time and money) to pursue investments in condos/apartments etc. but Mr. Zaransky writes about another possibility: a trio of publicly-traded REITs that specialize in student housing. There's American Campus Communities, Inc. (NYSE: ACC), GMC Communities Trust (NYSE: GCT), and Education Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE: EDR).

There are compelling arguments that student housing will prosper because of a shortage of dorm space and an increase in the college-age population and the percentage of people who attend college. Student housing may be more resilient/less tied to broader economic trends than the rest of the real estate market.

All of the REITs mentioned above sport dividend yields over 5%, and may be worth a look for investors seeking real estate exposure.

Tags: real estate, RealEstate, REITs, student housing, StudentHousing