Aviva Investors has teamed up with Amro Partners to buy a prime site in Berlin for the development of a €112m purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) scheme.
Amro Partners will act as development and operating partner for the 454-bed project.
The investment has been made through a dedicated investment platform focused on the German PBSA sector which Aviva Investors and Amro Partners launched in October last year.
When complete, the new scheme is expected to provide high-quality accommodation, including fully-furnished studios and shared apartments with private bathrooms and kitchenettes, and amenities, such as a lobby, fitness centre, study rooms, cinema room, landscaped courtyard and a terrace.
The scheme is located in Berlin’s Prenzlauer Berg district in the northeast of the city.
It is the second investment to be made in Berlin through the platform and follows the acquisition of a development site in Charlottenburg which is expected to create a €60m scheme comprising 200 student rooms.
In July, Aviva Investors announced it had financed a 342-bed PBSA scheme in Valencia, being brought forward by Amro Partners and Invesco.
George Fraser-Harding, head of European real estate equity at Aviva Investors, said: “We are pleased to extend our German PBSA platform alongside Amro Partners, which reflects our continued commitment to delivering student housing in a structurally undersupplied market.
“Prenzlauer Berg is one of Berlin’s most vibrant and popular neighbourhoods. As we continue to build out our pipeline of developments, we believe this is an example of a scheme which will provide high-quality accommodation while being positioned well to support the delivery of investment outcomes for investors.”
Raj Kotecha, chairman and chief executive of Amro Partners, said: “The acquisition of this site in Prenzlauer Berg represents another important step in the growth of our German PBSA strategy.
“Berlin continues to exhibit strong demand fundamentals driven by its world-class universities, international student appeal and acute shortage of purpose-built student accommodation.”
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