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With a total of 974 beds, the properties in Leeds and Sheffield bring the company’s portfolio to 3,260 purpose-built student accommodation beds across 11 UK properties. Image: Far East Orchard
Far East Orchard has acquired two freehold student accommodation properties in the United Kingdom for £66.5 million (about S$115.7 million).
With a total of 974 beds, the properties in Leeds and Sheffield bring the company’s portfolio to 3,260 purpose-built student accommodation beds across 11 UK properties – exceeding the group’s target of 3,000 beds by 2023.
In an SGX filing, Far East revealed that The Foundry in Leeds has 239 beds, while The Elements in Sheffield offers 735 beds.
Benefitting from their proximity to the city centre and university campuses, the two properties have been operating at full occupancy since they were opened in 2017 and 2018 respectively.
The properties will be managed by the groups’ facility manager for its existing student accommodation portfolio in Bristol, Brighton, Newcastle upon Tyne and Liverpool, UK.
It noted that Leeds and Sheffield are ranked among UK’s top eight student population cities, with a sizeable full-time student population needing accommodation facilities.
This comes as both cities houses several higher education institutions, which include two Russel Group universities – The University of Sheffield and University of Leeds.
“We have been on the journey to build our recurring income base. We are pleased that our strategic efforts are translating into results, with the continued growth of our student accommodation portfolio to 3,260 beds, ahead of our target to achieve 3,000 student beds by 2023. We look forward to capitalising on the favourable demand-supply dynamics across the six key student cities in the UK that we are currently present in,” said Lui Chong Chee, group CEO and managing director of Far East Orchard.
“Riding on our acquisition momentum, we will continue to explore accretive development and acquisition opportunities to enhance our recurring income, as part of our long-term strategy to build a resilient business,” he added.
Victor Kang, Digital Content Specialist at PropertyGuru, edited this story. To contact him about this or other stories, email victorkang@propertyguru.com.sg
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