Located in the Aravaca district of Madrid, the 500-bed scheme will bring much needed high-quality student housing to the city. Construction is set to start in 2021 and the development is scheduled to be ready for occupation for the 2023/24 academic year, according to RHC.
The site has full planning permission and is within close proximity of many of Madrid’s leading universities including IESE, ESIC, Francisco de Vitoria and the Complutense University of Madrid. It is also exceptionally well-located with rail and bus links to the city centre just a five-minute walk away.
The deal provides further evidence of the appetite institutional investors have for European and US accommodation in the current economic climate. RHC believes such assets offer long-term resilience as investments which deliver attractive returns at acceptable risk levels. RHC is raising additional capital to deploy into student accommodation, residential and senior living projects as it looks to capitalise on persisting demographic trends while utilising innovative technology to maximise efficiencies.
The development benefits from a modern design and layout and will provide students with high quality services and amenities rarely found in Spanish student housing, including high velocity Wi-Fi, a year-round events programme, communal study areas, a gym/wellness room, rooftop terrace, swimming pool, a cinema room, laundry, bike storage, car parking, 24-hour security and attractive landscaped outdoor spaces.
Russell Petrie, Head of Student Accommodation of Round Hill Capital said:
«This development will be a rare offering for students in Madrid and a flagship asset in Round Hill’s PBSA portfolio. We have designed an energy-efficient, modern building that will benefit from a range of services and amenities few students in the city will have experienced before. We look forward to construction starting and using technology and our experience to drive efficiencies and investment returns. We continue to see strong opportunities to invest in and develop institutional PBSA assets in the European market and beyond, and look forward to announcing new investments in the near future.»
The deal marks Round Hill Capital’s 23rd PBSA investment in continental Europe, bringing its current portfolio to over 9,590 beds. The company is actively seeking further investments in Spain as it looks to build on its expansive portfolio across the continent, having identified significant supply/demand imbalances in high quality student accommodation in the Spanish market. In the 2018-2019 academic year, there were only 20,693 PBSA beds in Madrid to meet a demand estimated at 114,000.
