Capping international student numbers will not do much to help ease rental market pressures, according to new research.

Reduced international student numbers are to be implemented from the 2025 school year, but the Property Council of Australia says, at best, the impact will be “marginal”. The research done for the PCA by Mandala Research says anyone hoping for a noticeable change to the rental market as a result will be disappointed. It will only impact markets with a high student population, and even then, rents are only expected to drop by an average of 0.8% which is about $5 per week.

Executive director of the PCA’s student accommodation council, Torie Brown, says instead of reducing migration the government should focus on delivering more homes. “The student visa caps will have a very real economic impact but have very little impact on rental availability,” she says. She says purpose-built student accommodation will help alleviate pressure in the rental market. “We need to tackle the full range of factors pushing up rents and shrinking housing supply, not pin the blame on one group,” she said. Her comments come as Australian Housing Conditions Dataset analysis shows almost 50% of renters believe they will never be able to afford their own home.