QuadReal Property Group has acquired an eight-asset, 3,460-bed purpose-built student accommodation portfolio in the U.K. from funds and entities managed by Apollo Global Management for over $913 million.

The Vancouver-based real estate investor, developer and operator with $94 billion in assets under management has transacted on assets located in key markets for the segment, it says, including London. Specific properties were not named.

Six of the eight properties are located within a Russell Group university, a cohort of 24 public research universities that includes the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge.

All the buildings were developed within the last five to seven years, QuadReal says, and have gyms, co-working spaces, audio-visual rooms, common areas and event spaces as amenities. The asset manager for the portfolio is OPRE Solutions.

“This transaction is fully aligned with our fundamentals-driven residential strategy in Europe, and student accommodation is a crucial sector for us,” Kristian Branum-Burns, QuadReal's senior vice-president of Europe, international real estate, said. 

“These are high quality, amenity-rich assets servicing in-demand universities across the country, and the portfolio is well placed to deliver sustained rental growth over the coming years.”

Apollo is a New York-based alternative asset management and retirement services platform with a global portfolio. As of Dec. 31, 2024, the company held US$751 billion in assets under management.

Why QuadReal chose U.K. student housing market

QuadReal is attracted to purpose-built student accommodations (PBSA) because it is a resilient and counter-cyclical asset class, offering “stable income, structural demand and long-term growth potential,” according to a release.

Noting a persistent undersupply in key university cities, a growing student population both domestic and international, and a movement toward higher-quality, professionally managed accommodation, QuadReal believes the student housing is a defensive asset and can generate “attractive” risk-adjusted returns.

PBSA in the U.K. is expected to outperform other asset classes over the next few years for these reasons, the Vancouver-based real estate investor says.

It specifically identified the U.K. having the largest student population in Europe, including the highest share of international students. Plus, the country is said to be heavily undersupplied — short approximately 840,000 units by 2027, according to one estimate.

“With resilient demand, structural undersupply, and a large cohort of international students, we have been actively looking to grow our PBSA exposure in the U.K. and this is an opportunity to expand our student housing platform,” Jay Kwan, QuadReal’s managing director of Europe, said.

QuadReal’s student and residential background

QuadReal is an experienced operator in the student housing and residential sectors. Its global portfolio includes over 28,000 student beds and 65,000 residential units, mostly in North America and Australia. In the U.K., QuadReal has amassed a portfolio of over 8,500 residential units and 1,000 student beds across 29 communities.

In 2023, it became the owner of one of the largest student housing providers in the U.S., and rebranded the 20,000-bed CA Student Living business as Article Student Living.

Last year, QuadReal made a major transaction in the residential sector, acquiring four class-A multifamily residential properties with over 1,400 units in the U.S. cities of Denver, Charlotte, Phoenix and Washington, D.C.