What’s driving the trend towards more luxury in student housing? Ingra Saffron gives an even-handed (albeit brief) analysis of the subject in yesterday’s New Republic:
Today’s student accommodations are being built to resemble the kind of apartments you would find in a new urban high-rise. It’s not unusual for a suite in one of these upscale dorms to include individual bedrooms with private baths and kitchens equipped with a full complement of stainless steel appliances—dishwashers and the obligatory granite countertops included. When admissions officers describe “amenities” to incoming students, their list now includes things like flat-screen televisions and tanning salons. At Drexel University, students are lining up for places in a new, privately built dorm designed by Robert A. M. Stern Architects, a firm known for its Hamptons beach houses and a fabulously expensive apartment building on Central Park West. Besides stunning views of the Philadelphia skyline, full-size beds, and some duplex units, its residents will have access to a private gym with a golf-course simulation room and a 30-seat screening room for practicing presentations—or holding Superbowl parties.
Read the whole thing. One of the points Saffron makes in passing is that it’s a narrower group of students that can afford a residential college experience. A recent WSJ article pointed out that:
- In 2013, 57% of families reported a student living at home or with a relative, up from 43% three years ago. Students from low-income households have traditionally lived at home in larger numbers, but among families with incomes over $100,000, the share of students staying at home has doubled to 48% since 2009-2010.