Brookfield has bought a 619-bed student housing portfolio from IP Investment Management and Glenmore Group for around £94m, through one of its private real estate funds.
The purpose-built student accommodation portfolio comprises Duresme Court in Durham, West Gate in Exeter, and Stanley Studios in Southampton (pictured).
Homes for Students’ Prestige Student Living brand and CRM Students will operate the properties, known as the Trium Portfolio. Maven Capital Partners UK previously acted as the asset manager on behalf of both IPIM and Glenmore.
Michael Fuller, managing director and head of Brookfield’s European core-plus programme, said the deal marks an “attractive entry” into student housing for the fund.
“The UK student housing market has remained resilient throughout the cycle, and these assets are well-positioned to benefit from continued strong demand for post-secondary qualifications from [the] UK, universities, and a shortage of high-quality PBSA facilities,” said Fuller.
“Leveraging our experience of owning and operating PBSA businesses, the portfolio will serve as a foundation for further acquisitions in UK cities with high-quality institutions.”
Selina Williams, executive director at IPIM, said: “The sale represents another profitable exit for our investors as we look to continue our strategy of developing institutional-quality PBSA in strong locations, before targeting an exit to long-term investors.
“We remain highly positive on the outlook for the UK PBSA sector, which despite the challenges of the pandemic has again demonstrated its resilient characteristics.”
Daniel Rubin, managing director at Glenmore Property, said: “We believe the outlook for the UK PBSA sector remains compelling and we look forward to extending our activities in this exciting market.”
Andrew Whiteley, partner at Maven, said: “Our strong track record in the market has seen us identify and deliver a number of high-quality PBSA developments across the UK which have proven to be highly attractive for private and institutional investors.”
Rachel Pengilley, partner at Knight Frank’s student property team, which brokered the deal, said: “Each of the properties occupies a prime micro-location within its respective student market and the portfolio has attracted much investor interest.”
Brookfield entered the student housing market in 2016 and has since amassed a European portfolio comprising around 50,000 beds. This includes Student Roost, which consists of more than 21,000 beds.
Last year Brookfield entered the US student housing market through a joint venture with Scion Group.
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