£71m BTR Asset in London Acquired by Unite Students

The largest provider of student accommodation in the UK, Unite Students, has entered the build-to-rent (BTR) market in London with the acquisition of a 178-unit asset.

Located in Stratford, the property comprises 319 beds across a mix of one, two and three-bed apartments and currently boasts an occupancy of 99%.

Unite Students are already present in the Stratford market, with two developments in the pipeline and over 1,700 beds currently in operation. The acquisition of 180 Stratford will increase Unite's presence in Stratford to around 3,700 beds.

The purchase will be funded from the proceeds of recent disposals.

Unite Students CEO, Richard Smith, commented: "As previously outlined, we believe that there is an exciting opportunity to grow our platform in the wider living sector by catering to the growing number of young professional renters living in major UK cities.

"We already serve this market through the 9,000 postgraduate students who live with us each year. This pilot BTR investment offers the opportunity to test our operational capability in the sector and understand the potential synergies with our student business."