Student housing: liability or smart investment?

The growing student population in Windsor has given rise to the lucrative business of student housing.

A city of approximately 36,000 post-secondary students, Windsor has a competitive student housing business. Online classifieds such as Off Campus Student Housing, Kijiji and Craigslist make it easy for students to search for homes that meet their needs. However, the same websites make it difficult to establish a competitive edge in such a saturated market.

An apartment and family home realtor for over 20 years, Janette Calandra has recently returned to the business of student housing which according to her, gave her a start in the real estate business.

“I knew of the demand for housing for students,” said Calandra, “but it wasn’t worth the liability that I was carrying in terms of fire hazards and other risks.”

The fire department allegedly did not approve of the way in which some Windsor student houses were being altered by landlords. According to Calandra, landlords were putting tiny rooms in every corner of their houses and posting them as six or seven bedroom houses in an effort to demand more rent. For this reason, many student homes are in violation of fire codes. This poses legal risks for landlords getting into the business of student housing.

“I came back to student housing because I was comfortable with the area and the home I purchased was in compliance,” said Calandra. “Once those liabilities were eliminated, I was comfortable renting the property out.”

Another issue prevalent in the student housing industry is price and quality of home, according to Kimberlee Brown-Mighty, a 21-year old University of Windsor student who recently rented a home with her friends.

“It is important to me that landlords be flexible, willing to work with a limited student budget and easily accessible,” said Mighty.

According to Calandra, once you get a group of students on the same page and willing to rent, the first and often biggest hurdle in student housing is broken. Calandra says her competitive edge to entice students is a reduced summer rate and a fully-furnished home.

“This is my first year trying a furnished home so I hope the students take care of it,” said Calandra, “It makes the students feel at home, and when they walk in I always get the same excited reaction which tells me not many landlords here do this.”

For more information on the student housing business, visit ocshwindsor.com