Belgian-headquartered Xior Student Housing has bought its European peer, Basecamp Group, in a deal worth €939 mln.
The deal includes 11, new purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) assets comprising 5,341 units across 11 cities in Germany, Poland, Denmark and Sweden.
The transaction is expected to be completed in stages between September 2022 and March 2023 and is expected to create the largest student housing business in continental Europe. The Basecamp assets are held in two funds, European Student Housing Fund (ESHF I) and European Student Housing Fund II (ESHF II).
Xior already owns properties in Belgium, Portugal, Spain and the Netherlands.
Of the 11 Basecamp assets, eight are fully operational, including one residential scheme, with three under development. The assets included in the sale will continue to be operated under the Basecamp brand.
Christian Teunissen, chief executive of Xior Student Housing, said: 'Xior and Basecamp have complementary portfolios and expertise: attractive, high quality assets, great operational teams and focus on customer experience. Basecamp is also situated in countries and cities where Xior is not active yet and by joining forces we will become the number one PBSA owner and operator in continental Europe.
I am confident that the combined expertise of our teams will help bring our businesses to the next level.'
The Basecamp standing assets comprise 263 beds in Potsdam, Germany; 412 beds in Leipzig, Germany; 1255 beds across two assets in Lódz, Poland; 733 beds in Katowice, Poland; 350 beds at Copenhagen South Campus, Denmark; 639 beds at Lyngby Student, Denmark; and 147 one- to three-bedroom apartments at Lyngby Residential, Denmark.
Assets under development include 663 beds in Aarhus, Denmark; 538 beds in Malmö, Sweden; and 460 beds at Aachen Bluegate, Germany.
Besides the acquired portfolio, ESHF II has seven further projects under development.
Justin Hamer, chief executive of Basecamp Group, said: 'Since its inception in 2014, Basecamp has been focused on building and developing smart student living spaces with vibrant communities, located close to city centres and universities.
'The sale of this multi-jurisdictional portfolio delivers against one of our key strategic priorities. We create strong income-producing real estate portfolios through developing high quality student accommodation in under supplied locations.
'We've invested heavily in our sales, marketing and operations teams and that is paying dividends with rents that are generally at a 25% premium to the local market.'
Armon Bar-Tur, executive chairman of Basecamp Group, added: 'Bringing Basecamp and Xior together marks the start of an exciting new chapter in the European PBSA market. Our teams are delighted to partner and execute our shared vision for delivering inspiring and lifeenriching student accommodation.'