Curation Capital has bought a £28.75m purpose-built student accommodation asset in Newcastle from IP Investment Management.
Curation Capital, a subsidiary of Steyn Group, has been active in the UK PBSA market recently, acquiring operational assets in London, Manchester, Nottingham and Birmingham in partnership with Patron Capital.
IPIM, a Hong Kong-based living sector real estate fund manager, acquired the PBSA scheme in 2018 as a value-add investment and added 30 beds to the scheme, as well as replacing the operator.
The building, on Howard Street in Newcastle’s Quayside area, comprises 416 beds, 85% of which are en suite rooms and 15% are studios.
It also includes amenities such as a cinema room, laundry facilities and bicycle storage.
Michael Haverty, partner at Curation Capital, said: “This acquisition allows us to continue to expand and diversify our UK student accommodation portfolio. We look forward to working closely with our development and operational partners, Forge Development and Almero Student, on the repositioning of this asset.”
Selina Williams, executive director at IPIM, said: “The property has performed well and attracted strong interest from investors, reflecting the positive fundamentals of the UK student housing market. This transaction represents an attractive outcome for our investors, and we look forward to exploring new opportunities to continue growing our PBSA portfolio.
Luke Shackleton, associate in Knight Frank’s student property team, which advised the vendor on the deal, said: “This opportunity provided a rare chance for investors to acquire an institutionally attractive and well-located operational PBSA scheme in a prime regional market. Newcastle continues to benefit from rising student numbers and a constrained development pipeline, placing it high among investors’ target markets.”
Photo from Knight Frank
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