The firm’s CIO discusses market selection, acquisition strategy and resident experience in this conversation with MHN’s Olivia Bunescu.
As development costs and financing conditions continue to shape what gets built, student housing companies are looking for more flexible ways to expand. For LV Collective, that has meant expanding beyond its Austin roots and building a vertically integrated national platform that brings investments, development, operations, design and marketing under one roof.
That strategy is taking shape across major university markets. In College Station, Texas, the company is developing the 922-bed Rambler Northgate, part of a larger mixed-use campus planned near Texas A&M University. LV Collective has also entered the Clemson University market with the 749-bed Rambler Clemson and recently refinanced the 798-bed Rambler Atlanta, which serves Georgia Tech.
Today, LV Collective has roughly 7,500 beds and $2 billion in projects under construction, according to the company’s CIO Chris Kott. In this episode of Student Housing Unlocked, Kott joins Senior Associate Editor Olivia Bunescu to discuss the fundamentals guiding the company’s growth strategy and how its integrated platform supports both ground-up development and acquisitions.
For Kott, market selection starts with supply and demand. On the demand side, the company examines university size, sustained enrollment growth and whether an institution has taken concrete steps to meet its growth targets. On the supply side, the firm mainly considers the development pipeline and barriers to entry, including construction challenges, topography and the local approval environment.
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Because data alone may not be enough for investment decisions, the company takes a “boots-on-the-ground” approach. Campus visits allow its team to evaluate the shadow market and speak directly with students about where and how they want to live. Ultimately, these conversations help LV Collective tailor its approach to each market.
Kott also discusses how LV Collective balances growth with resident experience. Safety, health and wellness, coworking space and community-building remain consistent priorities, while the company uses local feedback to shape each property. The conversation also explores the company’s investments in College Station, competition from conventional multifamily and where Kott sees opportunities for future expansion.
Here are the topics discussed:
- LV Collective’s evolution and national growth strategy (01:38)
- How vertical integration influences investment decisions (04:29)
- Supply, demand and university market selection (05:41)
- Market warning signs and the value of campus visits (07:05)
- Competition from conventional multifamily (09:08)
- Choosing between development and acquisitions (10:30)
- The investment case for College Station (12:22)
- Tailoring projects to individual university markets (14:50)
- Safety, wellness and community in the resident experience (16:12)
- LV Collective’s next phase of expansion (17:46)
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Music credits: “Easy to find” by Corinne song via Uppbeat.com
