Mapletree looks to offload £450m PBSA portfolio

Mapletree Investments is looking to sell a £450m value-add student accommodation portfolio comprising 24 assets. The portfolio comprises 4,844 beds in London, Lincoln, Liverpool, Birmingham, Manchester, Sheffield, Nottingham, Leicester and Aberystwyth. The Singapore-based group said the assets, being marketed for sale by JLL, are held within a Mapletree-sponsored closed-end private fund. It said “there is a need to explore the divestment of these assets in the fund to realise returns for our investors”. The sell-off follows Mapletree’s acquisition of a £1bn PBSA platform in April comprising 8,192 beds across 19 cities in the UK and Germany from Cuscaden Peak Investments. Matt Walker, chief executive of student housing at Mapletree, said: “Given heightened investment activities in the UK’s student housing market and an increasingly accommodative macroeconomic environment, we have launched the sale process with a view to maximise returns for our fund investors. “Mapletree continues to remain positive on the student housing sector in the UK and will continue to grow our investment and development portfolios in the market.”