By Katie Sloan, Associate Editor of Student Housing Business The coronavirus pandemic has had a major impact on all aspects of on- and off-campus student housing. In an attempt to better assess that impact and the sector’s outlook for the future, Student Housing Business conducted a survey of industry professionals over the course of several weeks in May. The survey was separated by industry function for specific elements of the business, allowing SHB to better understand the pandemic’s distinct influence on each segment of the industry. Of the survey’s 569 respondents, 27 defined their company’s role in the industry as that of an investment sales broker. In this segment of the industry, 15 percent of companies let go of or furloughed employees at the corporate level and 30 percent instituted pay cuts. Are investment transactions still happening during the pandemic? The response is mixed, with half of the investment sales brokers polled during SHB’s survey indicating yes and half indicating no. Of those who responded yes, 70 percent are deals that are being re-traded. When asked what kinds of buyers and sellers are still active, the response was predominantly 1031 exchange buyers and sellers and opportunistic buyers looking for dramatic …
