Did you know that New Haven has one of the best rental markets, and lowest vacancy rates, in the country? It's not terribly surprising, given all the students in the region, but it is good news for people who have property to rent. Every year a steady stream of students and faculty comes in, often from places very far from New Haven, and they won't sometimes be here long enough to buy, and of course many students can't afford to buy. We do sell some real estate, however, particularly downtown condo units, to students (or really their parents, in most cases). Grad students these days come in all ages and phases, and some are studying after they retire. In addition, every once in a while, parents follow their children. I once met a woman on a tour of a boarding school with our children and asked where she was from. She said that she didn't know yet, because she and her husband were planning to move to wherever their child decided to attend school! While that is taking helicopter parenting to a new level, it does increase real estate transactions.
This all just goes to show that we cannot make too many assumptions about rentals and students/families, because the demographic group is diverse enough to fall outside the normal parameters we might place on the category. So, if you own property, or are looking to buy investment property to rent, you should certainly consider the educational market. It's real, and it's big.
