The Student Depot acquisition by Kajima Properties and Griffin Real Estate was Poland’s first and largest Student Housing portfolio deal, comprising 2000 beds across five sites in Warsaw, Wroclaw, Lublin, Lodz and Poznan, plus a site in Gdansk (now under construction), in addition to the acquisition of the operational business that provides the marketing, management and administration services necessary for a successful PBSA platform.
Each property offers predominantly studio bedrooms with private bathroom and kitchen facilities, with some shared bedrooms, as well as communal areas, recreational facilities, co-working spaces, fitness facilities and other amenities.
Whilst the transaction was underwritten by the underlying real estate, the platform deal creates the opportunity for further investment and growth in the portfolio through development and acquisition in the coming years.
Name of the deal
Student Depot
The date of closing the deal
May 2019
Value of the transaction (in EUR)
€60m
Yield
6.25%
Seller, plus brief information about the company
Oaktree Capital Management
Consultancy which advised Seller
Savills
Purchaser, plus brief information about the company
Kajima Properties (Europe) Limited
Kajima Properties is the European real estate investment and development platform of the Kajima Corporation of Tokyo, Japan. Kajima have a broad and diversified investment and development portfolio across the Europe, with over €4bn AUM in the office, retail, logistics, health, education, leisure, elderly care and student housing sectors. Kajima have been active investors in the CEE real estate market for several years, particularly in the logistics and alternatives sectors.
Griffin Real Estate
Griffin Real Estate is the largest and most active investment manager in private equity real estate in CEE. The gross asset value of Griffin-managed investments across eight different platforms exceeds EUR 5 billion.
Consultancy which advised Purchaser
Colliers International (Warsaw office)
Financing institution
Santander
Current occupancy level
100%
Please say why this deal should be considered for the award
Student Depot is a landmark transaction in the Polish and CEE market, being the first portfolio and platform transaction in the Purpose Built Student Housing sector.
Whilst it is certainly not the largest transaction this year, it is undoubtedly one of the most significant because it sets the benchmark for the sector in Poland. With the growth of the alternatives sector generally, and Student Housing specifically, having been a popular subject for discussion across the Real Estate industry for a number of years, the acquisition of Student Depot is the catalyst for more activity in a sector that is likely to see a number of transactions in the coming years from investors eager to benefit from the value evident in the sector.
