Why not use your child's college housing as an opportunity to invest in a very fast growing market. Now you need to decide where they will live while they are here. it can make a lot of sense to buy a property here instead of renting or using student housing. for example, you can build 4+ years of equity and capture any appreciation that occurs while your child is in school here. upon graduation, if they elect to stay, housing is already secured. if they move on, then you can decide to rent your property out to new tenants, potentially generating cash flow and continuing to capture appreciation and build equity. or, you can sell and harvest any appreciation and equity you've built. the average price of a single family home in Austin has gone from just under $250,000 in 2013 to just over $300,000 in November of 2018. if your child had been enrolled at UT Austin for those five years, you would (on average) have roughly $50,000 in appreciation! rick reeder has been in Texas for over 30 years, and has over a decade of experience working with international students, their families, and the University of Texas international student services office - through the non-profit he founded called the African Leadership Bridge. Let Mr. Reeder use his experience and knowledge of the market for your benefit.