A Hedonic Model for Off-Campus Student Housing: The Value of Proximity to Campus

Abstract

This paper presents a hedonic model for off-campus student housing. Implicit values for select structural and locational characteristics were estimated, with a special emphasis on proximity to campus. Variable data for six university markets were collected with results indicating a nonlinear relationship between rent and distance from the academic center of campus. Within one mile of campus, there was a significant premium for proximity (16.3%), but between one and four miles from campus, the marginal value leveled off before decreasing again beyond the four mile mark (13% discount). This study adds to a limited collection of student housing research for today’s investors and developers making multi-million dollar decisions.

Key words:

• student housing
• hedonic pricing
• real estate

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Terry J. Fields

Terry Fields (corresponding author) is an Adjunct Professor of Real Estate and Property Management, Department of Management, at the University of Alaska-Anchorage. He was a graduate student in the Department of Family and Consumer Sciences at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana, when the paper was written. This paper received the 2012 Tessie Agan Graduate Student Paper Award from the Housing Education and Research Association (HERA).

Carla Earhart

Carla Earhart is Professor of Residential Property Management, Department of Family and Consumer Sciences, Ball State University.

Tung Liu

Tung Liu is Chair and Professor, Department of Economics, Miller College of Business, Ball State University.

Howard Campbell

Howard Campbell is Program Director and Associate Professor of Residential Property Management, Department of Family and Consumer Sciences, Ball State University.