Beginning this fall, UC Berkeley will guarantee two years of on-campus housing to all incoming first-year students, achieving a decade-long goal that has transformed and redeveloped multiple campus-owned properties in an effort to combat a longstanding student housing shortage.
Crews broke ground in January on the new Bancroft-Fulton student housing on the campus’s southwest corner. Topping out at 23 stories, the project will include over 1,600 beds, a two-story dining hall and study lounges on every floor. Heumann House, at Haste and Bowditch streets, is also progressing, with apartment-style living space for 1,100 undergraduate students and a ground-level grab-and-go market.
The completion of those two projects will unlock enough beds for the two-year housing guarantee, realizing a vision that was long championed by former Chancellor Carol Christ.
But the milestone doesn’t mean the campus is slowing down its efforts to meet demand for campus housing. A new development at the corner of Channing Way and Bowditch Street — two blocks south of the campus and across from People’s Park — is advancing through the review process, with plans for up to an additional 2,000 beds.
“Two years of guaranteed housing for every incoming first-year student is transformative for our student experience,” said Chancellor Rich Lyons, who credits Christ for her vision of a solution to the campus housing crunch. “It gives students the foundation they need — a place to live, a community to be part of and the stability that supports their well-being, allowing them to fully engage in their education and in the life of this university.”
Crews recently broke ground on the new Bancroft-Fulton student housing development on the campus’s southwest corner. The 23-story project will include over 1,600 beds, a two-story dining hall and study lounges on every floor.
Kieran Timberlake/UC Berkeley Capital Strategies
In an otherwise tight rental market in the neighborhoods near campus, the two-year housing guarantee for incoming freshmen means that students can live close to their classes, have the safety and security of student housing and more quickly settle into a community of their peers. Since utilities like internet, gas and electric are included, they’re not subject to the monthly jumps in energy bills and add-on fees that frustrate many Bay Area residents. Plus, soon-to-open projects will add improved dining facilities to the menu of options on and around campus.
“Living on campus is about far more than proximity to campus — it’s about living in a thriving, dynamic community that supports one’s growth and development,” said Stephen C. Sutton, vice chancellor for Student Affairs. “When students live in our residential communities, they gain daily access to peers, faculty and support services that strengthen learning, belonging and well-being. Expanding our housing portfolio is essential to ensuring more students can benefit from this experience and fully participate in campus life.”
A lack of campus housing has long been a challenge for Berkeley. A decade ago, Berkeley had the lowest percentage of beds for students among UC campuses — approximately 22% for undergraduates. The system-wide average was 38%.
Heumann House was “topped out” in August, with crews placing the final steel beam atop the 11-story structure. Work in recent months has shifted to exterior facades as well as mechanical and electrical installation. The project will open for students in time for the fall 2027 semester.
Brandon Sánchez-Mejia/UC Berkeley
Christ, who wasn’t yet chancellor at that time, chaired the newly formed housing task force charged with finding ways to accommodate more undergraduates while simultaneously navigating the tough realities of the budget. Complicating the problem even further, the area near campus lacked open spaces that are often easier to develop.
The group identified a range of campus-owned locations for housing developments. As chancellor, Christ oversaw a level of building activity not seen at Berkeley since the 1960s — work that has continued since her retirement in 2024.
The campus is currently housing 9,700 of its 33,000 undergrads, or about 29% — a marked improvement from a decade ago. Every incoming first-year student this academic year who applied and was eligible was offered housing; 90% of them are currently living in campus housing, according to campus officials.
Jo Mackness, associate vice chancellor for Residential & Student Service Programs, said the campus’s ability to guarantee two years of housing for incoming freshmen and one year for transfer students marks a significant achievement for Berkeley.
“It reflects years of planning and investment to expand capacity while ensuring current student housing remains safe and welcoming,” Mackness said. “By providing stability from the moment students arrive, we can help them focus on what matters most: their academic journey and building connections at Berkeley.”
Heumann House is slated to open in time for the start of the fall 2027 semester, and the Bancroft-Fulton project will open the following year, adding thousands of additional beds.
Those projects follow the 2024 completion of Anchor House, a state-of-the-art, donor-funded building on the west side of campus that houses some 800 transfer students and provides daytime resources for those students who commute to campus.
A proposal undergoing environment reviews would redevelop the corner of Channing Way and Bowditch Street.
SOM/UC Berkeley Capital Strategies
Yet another project — at the corner of Channing Way and Bowditch Street — is advancing that would turn one of the few buildable lots on university-owned land near campus into a vibrant residential hub. The proposal includes a tower up to 26 stories tall that would house as many as 2,000 students and add to the expanding student residential community in the area. Plans call for a new dining facility, as well as numerous academic and social spaces.
The project would recognize the history of the Anna Head School complex by preserving three buildings on the site. Three other structures would be removed due to fire and flood damage and other building code issues, creating space for the new student housing and dining facilities. Plans call for the remaining buildings to be integrated into the development, with the historic Alumnae Hall serving as a centerpiece for the project’s dining facilities.
The proposed project is undergoing environmental review, with potential approval at a UC Board of Regents meeting in 2027.