You are viewing 1 of your 1 free articles
Major housing association sells 800-room student accommodation development to private investment fund
Optivo has sold an 800-room student accommodation development to a real estate investment fund managed by a UK-based asset management firm.
Clearbell Property Partners III LP, a fund managed by Clearbell Capital, has acquired the Lucia Foster Welch student residence in Southampton from the 44,000-home housing association.
Optivo originally acquired the site in 1995 on a 25-year deal with Solent University.
Now that the contract has come to an end, Optivo has made the decision to consolidate their student housing to the London and Eastbourne areas.
In its most recent annual results published in July last year, Optivo said the coronavirus pandemic reduced the fair value of its student accommodation by £6.1m.
When the COVID-19 pandemic first hit in March, a number of housing associations, including Optivo, came under pressure to stop collecting rent from students who had left their accommodation when universities shut.
READ MORE
In April, Optivo released students on 50-week contracts 10 weeks early, which effectively prevented them from having to pay rent during the summer term.
Clearbell will now work with property consultancy Iceni Property Asset Management, whose Every Student brand will be responsible for managing the building.
The accommodation will be fully refurbished, including the replacement of lifts and repairing of bathrooms. Works are expected to be complete by the end of the summer in order for letting to begin in September this year.
Rob Mills, partner at Clearbell Capital, said: “Southampton is a vibrant and energetic student city, and Lucia Foster Welch is in the perfect spot for students.
“While many students continue to study remotely and live at home due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we believe by September 2021 there should be a greater influx of students into Southampton who will benefit from a modern, secure and affordable place to live.”
Tom Paul, director of treasury and commercial at Optivo, said: “The deal with Solent has now come to its natural end, and the site needs reinvestment.
“This strategic disposal consolidates our direct let student accommodation business in London, where demand is strongest and where we benefit from operational and marketing synergies.
“The proceeds of the disposal support our investment into new social housing and refurbishment works planned and underway at our other student accommodation sites.”
Matthew McAdden, founding director and chief executive of Iceni, said: “We are delighted to have launched Every Student, working in partnership with Clearbell.
“Our focus will be on delivering quality, affordably priced accommodation and on the well-being of our student customers.”
Sign up for our asset management newsletter
Already have an account? Click here to manage your newsletters
Sign up for our Retrofit Challenge Virtual Summit
If topics such as those mentioned in the above article are of interest to you, register for our Retrofit Challenge Virtual Summit here.
