THE ITALIANPBSA MARKET
Italy offers the strongest fundamentals for PBSA investment throughout Europe, underpinned by a stark supply and demand imbalance, a growing population of both international and domestic students and an increasing desire amongst students for high-quality accommodation.
There are currently two million students studying in Italy and only 85,000 beds, driving a severe lack of supply which is only set to continue with increasing student numbers. Italy experienced 5% year-on-year growth in student numbers during 2025, whilst international enrolment now stands at 110,000 students, up 14% in 2024/25 and 127% since 2016. The number of Erasmus students is also increasing, in 2025 there were 173,500 studying in Italy (up 13% on 2024) and approximately 50,000 high paying US students choose Italy to study abroad each year.
The demand and supply imbalance in Italy is only growing. With Italy becoming increasingly attractive to international students as well as domestic students moving away from their hometowns for university, demand is rising at a rapid pace, far outweighing supply.
Investor ConvictionACCELERATINGBUILDINGGROWINGSTRENGTHENING
Investor appetite towards PBSA in Italy can be demonstrated through the investment activity seen in 2025. PBSA volumes reached €520m, up c.65% year-on-year and represented the leading asset class within the Living Sector, accounting for 51% of investment. The number of transactions rose to 14, up from just one in 2020, with forward purchases as the primary deal structure.
As investors increasingly turn their heads towards Italy, the pipeline is set to take the number of operational beds from 85,000 to over 100,000 by 2028. However, even if the full pipeline is developed, the provision rate will remain extremely low at c.5%, leaving the market materially undersupplied.
€520M
Investment volumes (2025)
+65%
year-on-year growth
51%
Of Living Sector
14
Transactions (from 1 in 2020)
100K+
Beds by 2028
~5%
Provision (post-pipeline)
