Carlyle gets loan for London student housing projects

The Carlyle Group's Pure Student Living has been granted development financing for the construction of three London sites from banks Barclays and Lloyds.

Pure Student Living, a London-focused student accommodation brand formed in a joint venture between Carlyle and Generation Estates, has secured £125 mln (EUR 160 mln) of funding for three developments shortly after having completed its first development, Pure Highbury in Finsbury Park.

The funds will enable Pure Student Living to start the £37 mln construction at the Pure Hammersmith site, the former Hammersmith Palais concert venue and nightclub, and its Pure City development on Goswell Road in Islington. In addition, Investec has provided a development facility for Pure Bankside, a £15 mln project on Ewer Street in Southwark. These developments are due to be delivered during 2013 and 2014 and, once completed, will extend Pure Student Living's capacity to around 1,800 beds in London.

In parallel to the building's completion last week in time for the 2012 University Clearing and the new academic year, Barclays and Lloyds have also provided long-term finance for Pure Highbury, freeing additional capital to drive the venture's student accommodation programme.

Pure Hammersmith will provide 418 rooms and is located in West London. Ground works have already commenced on the site and the property, which will incorporate many features from the former iconic music venue, is expected to complete for the 2013 academic year. Pure Bankside, in Ewer Street in Southwark, which is located close to major institutions including King's College London and the London School of Economics, will provide 150 rooms designed as single en suite studios and will be complete for the 2013 academic year.

The Pure City site was acquired from City University London and Carlyle has since worked closely with the University and the London Borough of Islington to secure planning consent to develop the existing outdated student accommodation and sports centre. Works have started and once complete in September 2014 the project will consist of three new buildings, providing 805 rooms of student accommodation, together with a new 30,000 sq ft sports hall and gym as well as 23,000 sq ft of space for academic use which are pre-let to the University.