High demand and soaring student housing costs in Northern California have created housing insecurity. A Hope Student Basic Needs Survey report from 2025 showed that 14% of the nearly 75,000 college students surveyed across 16 states experienced homelessness, with many of them even sleeping in their cars to save money.

This is pressuring lawmakers to prioritize faster construction to help combat the affordability crisis. New California laws, such as Assembly Bill 648, aim to streamline building by easing requirements for student housing.

California-based McCullough Landscape Architecture has been working in the student housing sector for nearly two decades. Mahalakshmi Balachandran, a senior associate at McCullough, said affordability is just one of the factors keeping students on campus, especially post-pandemic, when classes are hybrid or online.

“While students preferred more independent living arrangements during Covid, now they are moving back to shared spaces because of the current costs of student living,” she said. “They also want to interact with other students.”

Balachandran is speaking on a panel titled Planning for Tomorrow: Capital Projects and Campus Expansions at Bisnow’s Northern California Student Housing and Higher Education Summit on April 30 at the Grand Hyatt San Francisco. Register here.

Bisnow spoke with Balachandran about the student housing trends she's seeing, how McCullough is helping address some of the challenges, and her outlook for the future of student housing in Northern California.

Bisnow: What’s a major student housing trend you're seeing in Northern California?

Balachandran: While students preferred private apartments over traditional dormitory sizes just a few years ago, we’re now seeing them move back to shared spaces. This is more of a trend because of the effects of isolation and social distancing. Now, first-year students who are moving for the first time onto a new campus want to share a space and feel less homesick by being more socially active.

Bisnow: How can developers plan for campus expansion while keeping enrollment demand, affordability and existing infrastructure in mind?

Balachandran: Developers and colleges should start seeing student housing as campus expansion rather than individual development. I think AB 648, and the exemptions that have been given for the California Environmental Quality Act, allow for infill development and guide us to a space where we can utilize urban cores and college-owned properties located within a half-mile radius from the campus.

The exemptions from this bill allow for developers and college districts to easily buy up properties in urban areas near college campuses, then redevelop and rezone these properties into mixed-use student communities. This not only addresses the student housing shortage but also creates a more vibrant living environment.

Bisnow: What project is McCullough working on to help address student housing challenges? 

Balachandran: We are working on a project with the College of San Mateo, providing housing for all three colleges within the San Mateo County Community College District. This housing project will provide 316 beds for first-generation low-income students. The project will also provide shuttle services, so it becomes more of an integrated student district.

By transforming an underutilized campus parking lot into a vibrant urban infill, we’ve integrated active and passive zones, ranging from quiet study areas to lively recreational spaces alongside dedicated shuttles and rideshare spots to streamline campus mobility.

Bisnow: What are some of the hot topics that will be covered at the event?

Balachandran: A major topic we’ll be discussing is how we can provide safe and secure housing access for students to continue their education comfortably.

We will also discuss the types of products being delivered and ways we can improve affordability, either through public-private partnerships or alternative delivery models. How are the new legislations or the funding from the state supporting these developments?

Bisnow: What do you hope people will take away from this event? 

Balachandran: The major takeaway from this event would be what kind of trends and models are changing and if they need to start thinking about rezoning urban cores to accommodate student housing. With the new California exemptions, the industry is eager to understand how they will change the permitting process and how quickly these exemptions can bring projects back to life so more students can have affordable and comfortable housing accommodations.

Register here for Bisnow’s Northern California Student Housing and Higher Education Summit on April 30. 

This article was produced in collaboration between McCullough Landscape Architecture and Studio B. Bisnow news staff was not involved in the production of this content.

Studio B is Bisnow’s in-house content and design studio. To learn more about how Studio B can help your team, reach out to studio@bisnow.com.