Forward purchase agreed for student accommodation scheme

Deutsche Finance International, a pan-European private equity real estate investor which manages more than €2.7bn of assets, has agreed to the forward purchase of a 462-bed purpose-built student accommodation scheme in Leicester.The development will be acquired from student accommodation developer Watkin Jones in an off-market transaction for £35.6m on behalf of DFI’s pan-European Value Add Fund.The investment is DFI’s second UK PBSA acquisition, following the 2017 purchase of Canterbury Student Manor, a 386-bed student accommodation asset in Canterbury. DFI has also assembled, through both acquisitions and development, a 1,100-unit student accommodation platform in Denmark.Watkin Jones is developing the Leicester property, which is scheduled to complete in time for the 2021/22 academic year and will provide a mixture of four to seven-bed clusters and studios of different sizes.Approximately 3,875 sq ft will be dedicated to modern and spacious amenities including communal areas, study and meeting rooms, virtual gym space, a games room and a landscaped courtyard. The asset is a short walk to Leicester city centre and De Montfort University.DFI was advised by CBRE, Allen & Overy, Deloitte and Hollis.