BROOKLINE, MASS. — Welltower has acquired the former Newbury College campus near Boston for $34 million. The 7.8-acre campus currently features eight structures totaling 142,000 square feet, which Welltower plans to redevelop into seniors housing properties. Christopher Sower, James Elcock, Tom Hynes and Bob Cronin of Colliers International represented the seller, Newbury College in the transaction.
ORLANDO, FLA. — Development Ventures Group (DEVEN) and Ustler Development Inc., in a public-private partnership with the City of Orlando, have delivered UnionWest at Creative Village on the University of Central Florida’s campus. UnionWest is a 15-story building with 644 student housing beds, 100,000 square feet of academic space, 11,000 square feet of ground-level retail space and a 600-space parking garage. Construction on the $105 million development began in October 2017. The building is located at the corner of West Livingston Street and North Terry Avenue in downtown Orlando, which grants access to both University of Central Florida and Valencia College students. Five of the six ground-floor retail locations in UnionWest are leased. Tenants include Vera Asian, Addition Financial, Subway, Dunkin’ and Qdoba Mexican Grill. The student housing portion opened in time for the fall 2019 semester at 97 percent occupancy.
BOSTON — A partnership between American Campus Communities (ACC) and Northeastern University has opened LightView, an 825-bed student housing community in Boston. The 20-story development offers four-bedroom units with shared or private accommodations. Amenities include social and recreational lounges, a fitness center, 24-hour academic success center and 2,000 square feet of retail. ACC will own and operate the building. The project — designed by CUBE 3 and Elkus Manfredi Architects — was fully leased prior to opening.
ATLANTA — Peak Campus Development and investment partner Blue Vista Capital Management have completed Theory West Midtown, a 525-bed student housing community located near the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta. The property offers fully furnished studio, one-, two-, three- four- and five-bedroom units with bed-to-bath parity. Shared amenities include a resort-style swimming pool with a sundeck, outdoor grilling area, 24-hour fitness center, computer lab, study lounges, game room with billiards, outdoor lounge with a fire pit, roof deck with seating and grilling stations, business center and 10,500 square feet of retail space. The property was designed by Niles Bolton Associates Inc. and built by Summit Contracting Group.
LAFAYETTE, LA. — Rise: A Real Estate Co. has completed The Heritage, a 589-bed student housing community located on the University of Louisiana at Lafayette campus. The development features five residential buildings geared toward upperclassmen. Shared amenities include ground-floor retail, a fitness center, swimming pool, resident lounge, game room, a business center, sand volleyball court, outdoor grill stations and fire pits. The development also houses an office suite for the university’s Housing and Residential Life staff.
PHILADELPHIA — CA Student Living, the Chicago-based student housing investment and development arm of CA Ventures, will open The Link University City, a 252-bed community serving Drexel University in Philadelphia. The property offers one-, two- and three-bedroom units alongside six two-level townhomes. Shared amenities include a fitness and wellness center, private study rooms, co-working and research lounges, a cyber lounge, breakfast and coffee bar and a sky lounge with a pool table, darts and televisions. Student leases are available starting mid-September 2019.
FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. — A public-private partnership between RISE: A Real Estate Co. and Nova Southeastern University has opened Mako Hall, a 608-bed living/learning community on the university’s campus in Fort Lauderdale. The development offers a mix of one-, two- and four-bedroom, apartment-style units. Shared amenities include lounge areas, open and semi-private study rooms and an outdoor courtyard with hammocks, table tennis and grilling areas. Nova Southeastern is a private university that has 20,793 enrolled students.
TUSCALOOSA, ALA. — Capstone Real Estate Investments (CREI) has sold Landmark Apartments, a student housing community located near the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa. CREI purchased the asset in January 2018 before beginning extensive renovations. Terms of the transaction and the identity of the buyer were not disclosed. Landmark Apartments offers one-, two- and three-bedroom units. Shared amenities include a 24-hour fitness center, business center and printing station, a game room, yoga studio, swimming pool, an outdoor fireplace and grilling station, a tanning bed, lounge, hot tub, sauna, steam room and a pet park.
BLACKSBURG, VA. — NorthMarq has arranged $16 million in construction financing for Park 37 Apartments, a 215-bed student housing community located near the Virginia Tech campus in Blacksburg. Mike Lowry of NorthMarq secured the loan through a regional bank on behalf of an undisclosed, Virginia-based developer. The financing features a three-year term and interest-only payments. The developer broke ground on Park 37 Apartments in April, with completion scheduled for July 2020. Shared amenities at the property will include a clubhouse, lounge, fitness center, swimming pool, fire pit, covered bike storage and onsite access to one of Blacksburg’s walking/biking trails.
Student loan figures indicate a growing affordability problem in higher education. The Federal Reserve reports that student loan debt in the United States is almost $1.6 trillion today, with 42 percent of people who attended college — which represents 30 percent of all adults — incurring at least some debt from their education. With a focus on technology-based degree programs, the cost to attend college is rising. But it’s not just tuition that’s going up. According to College Board, the cost of housing exceeds the cost of tuition at four-year, public universities. For the 2017-2018 academic year, students paid an average of $9,970 for in-state tuition while room and board ran $10,800. “There’s a real need to get to the middle of the market and to build quality housing that students can afford,” says Joe Coyle, president of Michaels Student Living. Michaels Student Living is a specialized area of expertise within The Michaels Organization, a leading affordable housing developer in the United States. “Housing is a big part of what contributes to the high cost of attending college. We have to work together to find ways to mitigate this. It’s going to become more and more important.” While the student …
