As classes commence this week and students settle into their new homes, both on- and off-campus, a new Desjardins report warns of a shortage of affordable student housing and its implications for the housing market writ large.

“Insufficient student accommodations should worry all Canadians,” wrote Desjardins economists Kari Norman and Randall Bartlett. As the demand for higher education in Canada continues to surge, the availability of student housing has not kept pace, the authors said.