Blue Vista, Clarion Acquire Student Portfolio
More than 2,500 beds serve universities in three states.
A joint venture between Blue Vista Capital Management and Clarion Partners has acquired a four-property, 2,787-bed student housing portfolio from Columbus Pacific Group. The assets are located near Pennsylvania State University, College of Charleston and Texas A&M University.
Blue Vista affiliate PeakMade Real Estate will manage the properties. TSB Realty brokered the transaction, while TSB Capital Advisors provided debt placement services.
One of the properties is The Valley Apartments & Townhomes, a 206-unit, 540-bed student community completed in 2019. The two-building community is at 870 Toftrees Ave. in State College, Penn., 1 mile from Penn State University.
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Completed in 2013, The View sits adjacent to The Valley Apartments & Townhomes and features 216 units and 584 beds. Columbus acquired the asset in March 2016 for $42.1 million from Harrison Street, according to Yardi Matrix information.
SkyGarden is the community serving the College of Charleston. The property came online in 2017 and has 94 units and 309 beds. Located at 28 Woolfe St., the 10-story building is within walking distance from the university. Columbus acquired it in May 2021 from South City Partners for $41.7 million, the same source shows.
The fourth asset that changed hands is The Cottages of College Station, a 369-unit, 1,354-bed property in College Station, Texas. The property at 2300 Cottage Lane consists of multiple two- and three-story buildings across 42 acres and is some 3 miles from the Texas A&M University.
The four communities have similar amenities, including fitness centers, swimming pools, business centers, clubhouses and volleyball and tennis courts.
Student housing sector remains resilient
The student housing sector continues to remain one of the most resilient asset classes in multifamily. Nevertheless, there has been a slight decrease in student housing investment compared to last year. About 39,000 beds sold year-to-date through September, a 10 percent decline year-over-year, according to a Yardi Matrix report.
Last month, Gilbane Development Co. and CBRE Investment Management acquired six student housing properties totaling nearly 3,000 beds. Three operational communities and three shovel-ready developments will be recapitalized through a General Partner-led secondary.
In another notable transaction, The Scion Group and an unnamed institutional investor purchased 14 student assets for $893 million from Harrison Street. The properties totaled 8,724 beds in 11 states, near 13 different universities.
