Student accommodation fund acquires French properties

The Victus European Student Accommodation IC Limited Fund has made its first move into France with the strategic acquisition of two buildings in Chambery.

The two existing buildings will allow the Fund to provide students with access to 144 fully let studios in the picturesque town, located in the Rhône-Alpes region in southeastern France.

After purchasing the properties from CBB JV S.á.r.l., the Fund has identified a number of other investment opportunities in France as it looks to expand its offering across Europe.

With an estimated 75% of the student market not catered for with private or public accommodation in France, Victus has become the first fund to identify and act upon this opportunity and help to combat the undersupply of student accommodation across the region.

This has also been noted by the French government which has increased its student housing budget to provide a further 11-15,000 student housing units by 2020. Further highlighting the potential for investors to see valuable returns.

Andrew Henton, chairman of the Victus Board, commented, “These acquisitions in France mark a significant breakthrough into a new and significant European student market. The Fund looks forward to further French acquisitions.”

The Chambery purpose-built student accommodation properties are fully let and will be refurbished over the next couple of years to enhance the product further.

Andrew Jamieson, director of European Development and Acquisition at Crosslane, said: “Research has shown that there are approximately 342,500 existing student rooms across France to supply the 2,320,000 students.

“We have identified a clear investment opportunity in this emerging property sector and expect to see stable yields for investors over the next 10-15 years.”

The Victus Fund was established to invest in a blend of mature existing student properties and new developments in strong university cities across Europe where there is a demonstrable supply/demand imbalance, and is successfully executing that investment policy.

Crosslane Fund Managers LLP has a track record in the sector having previously created two UK Student Accommodation funds. The Fund will work with joint venture partners and local developers within university towns to gain regional insight, complementing Victus’ internal property and investment expertise. The target annual return of the Fund is 9-12% pa.