£23m deal for York residential site agreed
Owner and operator of student accommodation, Empiric Student Property, has signed a £23m deal for a 220-bed scheme in York.
Empiric has acquired the freehold of the scheme at Foss Studios, which was completed for the 2015/16 academic year.
The site, located on Lawrence Street between York city centre and the University of York, has been acquired from Curlew Student Trust, the student property investment vehicle of CBRE Global Investment Partners.
Currently managed by Fresh Student Living, it will be integrated into Empiric’s Hello Student operating platform at the end of March 2017.
Foss Studios is fully let for the 2016/17 academic year to students from both the University of York and York St John University.
The announcement comes hot on the heels of the Castle Gateways development plans announcement yesterday, which aims to develop an area of York down the road from Empiric’s new site, Clifford’s Tower and Piccadilly.
Paul Hadaway, chief executive of Empiric Student Property plc, commented: “Foss Studios is our second investment in York, a city which remains of great interest to us, with a full-time student population of over 23,000 (HESA 2015/16) across two universities, with approximately 15% being international and 22% postgraduate.
“The historic and cosmopolitan city of York is regularly ranked one of the most beautiful in Europe and is one of the most accessible cities in the UK. Both universities have active and respected research programmes. This acquisition is in line with Empiric’s investment criteria and returns profile.”
