Student Housing

Balfour-Beatty-Vanderbilt-Nashville

NASHVILLE, TENN. — A public-private partnership between Balfour Beatty Campus Solutions, Axium Infrastructure and Vanderbilt University has broken ground on a 616-bed student housing project in Nashville. The total cost of the project was not disclosed, but the Nashville Post and Nashville Business Journal both reported late last week that the development team received approximately $107 million in construction financing. According to Vanderbilt University’s news service, construction of the project was originally scheduled to start last summer but was delayed due to COVID-19. The community will be located on Broadway between Lyle and 20th avenues and will include 25,000 square feet of retail space. The new residence hall will offer a mix of studio, one- and two-bedroom units targeting graduate and professional students. Residences will be furnished with full washers and dryers, and costs of utilities will be included in rent. Shared amenities will include a 13,000-square-foot collaboration space with a dedicated area for academic and entrepreneurial endeavors, private study spaces, fitness center and a public courtyard. “Providing an updated housing option with modern amenities in a vibrant neighborhood convenient to campus will further the university’s goal to recruit the best graduate and professional students and provide them with an …

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail

DAVIS, CALIF. — HighBridge Properties has started construction of The Ryder on Olive, a 706-bed development near the University of California, Davis. The 260,000-square-foot community is set for delivery in August 2021 and will offer a mix of fully furnished two-, three-, four- and five-bedroom units. Shared amenities will include a fitness center, yoga room, study areas, game rooms, a swimming pool, karaoke room, dog park and a 24-hour micro-market offering food and drinks. The project’s development team includes partner Grand Peaks Development; general contractor Brown Construction; Humphreys & Partners Architects; and South Park Interiors. Asset Living will manage the community.

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail
YOUnion @ Ann Arbor

When the world shut down over a year ago, architects, designers and developers took a collective pause to assess what needed to change in the built environment. A particularly scrutinous eye was paid to off-campus student housing, a sector whose successful model was based on bringing students together, not keeping them a safe distance apart. Some sweeping changes were recommended at the onset — many operational in nature, based on the latest guidance from health officials. As courses moved online and on-campus residence halls closed, off-campus communities emerged as a safe haven for students who did not want to — or were unable to — return home. The resilience of the sector, as evidenced last fall by pre-leasing rates and rents that were only slightly below 2019 levels, suggested the temporary tweaks made out of necessity in 2020 worked. The real question was whether those modifications would carry through to newly developed and renovated communities post-pandemic, and if so, what form they might take. Our firm took the time to reflect on how design must evolve to meet the changing needs and expectations of students, parents, operators and developers — all of which have different priorities. At the top of …

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail
HERE-State-College

STATE COLLEGE, PA. — University Partners has acquired HERE, a 755-bed student housing community located near the Pennsylvania State University campus in State College. The property was built in 2020 and offers one-, two-, three-, four- and five-bedroom units with bed-to-bath parity. Communal amenities include 30,000 square feet of retail space, private study rooms and a penthouse sky lounge with a kitchen and deck, as well as a spa with a hot tub and sauna.

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail
Saratoga-Apts-Tucson-AZ

TUSCON, ARIZ. — Taylor Street Advisors has directed the sale of Saratoga Apartments, a student housing property located at 901 N. First St. in Tucson. The property is situated about 1.3 miles west of the University of Arizona. An undisclosed buyer acquired the asset for $2.4 million, or $87,500 per unit. The Class B student housing property features 16 two-bedroom units and 12 one-bedroom units. The new ownership plans to renovate the property.

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail
2818-Place-College-Station

COLLEGE STATION, TEXAS — Los Angeles-based investment firm Mountain Capital Partners has acquired 2818 Place and Parkway Place, two student housing properties in College Station totaling 1,128 beds that serve students of Texas A&M University. The garden-style properties total 350 units, were respectively built in 2008 and 2009 and feature amenities such as two pools, volleyball and basketball courts, fitness centers, game rooms, computer labs and study rooms. Ryan Lang, Jack Brett and Ben Harkrider of Newmark represented the seller, Chicago-based Blue Vista Capital Management, in the transaction.

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail

The U.S. multifamily sector remains an attractive option for real estate investors looking for a safe haven. Beyond the pool of traditional buyers who are actively acquiring apartment properties, the sector has become a landing spot for companies that aren’t legacy multifamily owners. Steven DeFrancis, CEO of Cortland, cited REITs like Blackstone Real Estate Investment Trust as newly establishing a presence in the multifamily sector. BREIT recently made a $240 million preferred equity investment in Tricon Residential connected with Tricon’s purchase of single-family rental (SFR) homes in Nashville. Nuveen Real Estate is also a recent institutional investor entrant in the emerging SFR sector. “We’re seeing a lot of new capital, whether it’s coming from overseas or from here,” said DeFrancis. “Institutional capital is continuing to move into real estate, and then within real estate there’s a lot of movement from other sectors into multifamily.” Jessica Levin, senior director of acquisitions at Intercontinental Real Estate Corp., said that the influx of capital into the U.S. apartment market the past six months has been “astronomical.” She also said that there’s no slowdown ahead. “Competition is stiffer now than in the past 10 to 15 years, and it’s only going to increase from …

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail
Oxford-North-Student-Apts-Fullerton-CA

FULLERTON, CALIF. — The Mogharebi Group (TMG) has arranged the $44.4 million sale of Oxford North Student Apartments, a 100-unit community located near the California State University, Fullerton campus. The property was built in 1972 and features 10 buildings with ground-floor parking garages. Communal amenities include a resort-style swimming pool and spa with cabanas; an outdoor entertainment lounge; barbecue grill stations; outdoor televisions; a clubhouse with billiards; and a fitness center with a Pilates and yoga studio. Alex Mogharebi, Otto Ozen and Mike Marcu of TMG represented the sellers, a joint venture partnership based in Southern California and the U.K. The buyer was a Southern California-based private investment group.

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail

BLACKSBURG, VA. — Graystone Fund I (GFI) has acquired a 456-bed, 140-unit portfolio of student housing near the Virginia Tech University campus in Blacksburg for $33.8 million. The properties were previously owned and managed by BCR Property Management. GFI plans to make improvements and repairs to the acquired portfolio, aiming to increase the overall quality and marketability of the product. Further details on the acquisition were not disclosed. Graystone Cos. also plans to construct an approved 204-bed student housing community at the corner of Toms Creek Road in Blacksburg, furthering its footprint in the Virginia Tech market.

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail
The-Ranch-at-Lubbock

LUBBOCK, TEXAS — Miami-based private equity firm Centurion Property Group has acquired The Ranch at Lubbock, a 737-bed student housing community serving Texas Tech University. The property features 243 units in one-, two- three- and four-bedroom floor plans. Amenities include two pools, a volleyball court, basketball court, fitness center, study lounge and pet park. The new ownership plans to renovate the property and rebrand it as The ONE at Lubbock. Ryan Lang, Jack Brett and Ben Harkrider of Newmark brokered the deal, the seller and sales price in which were not disclosed.

FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail