UK student accommodation provider Unite Group has reported strong sales performance for the 2008-2009 year, with 62% of rooms already reserved by 29 February. This compares to 56% in the year earlier. Pointing to the resilience of the growing student accommodation market, the company said it looked ahead to 2008 and future years with confidence.
UK student accommodation provider Unite Group has reported strong sales performance for the 2008-2009 year, with 62% of rooms already reserved by 29 February. This compares to 56% in the year earlier. Pointing to the resilience of the growing student accommodation market, the company said it looked ahead to 2008 and future years with confidence.
Unite said it had seen a substantial increase in its secured development pipeline, with 2,901 new bed spaces secured for future delivery. The company also has planning consents for 16 new schemes covering a total 4,392 bed spaces. The company stresses that it had successfully increased its presence in major college cities. Unite has secured 2,173 new bed spaces in London while it also has projects in Oxford and Exeter.
The figures were contained in Unite's preliminary 2007 figures. Adjusted net asset value per share, before a one-off exceptional charge from the planned redemption of the Unite Finance One (UFO bond) rose 7.3% to 456 pence (EUR 5.94). Basic NAV per share at end-2007 was 364 pence compared to 391 pence while adjusted net diluted asset value per share was 410 pence, after the 46 pence per share pre-tax exceptional charged associated with the UFO bond redemption. Unite’s average stabilised portfolio yield at end-2007 was 5.78% compared to 5.80% a year earlier and 5.69% at 30 June 2007.
The company swung to a pre-tax loss of £ 67.13 mln from a profit of £ 58.56 mln. Revenues slipped to £ 72.14 mln from £ 110.64 mln as the firm pushes ahead with a strategic shift towards becoming a co-investor and developer and sells some of its revenue-generating investment assets to third-parties.
