-‎Wire-

Morgan Stanley Investment Management and Global Student Accommodation completed a $1 billion off-market acquisition of eight student housing assets totaling 6,200 beds near top-tier U.S. universities, marking one of the largest single transactions in the sector this year.

New York City-based Vesper Holdings is expanding its student housing portfolio near the University of Missouri with its purchase of The Den, a 158-unit, 522-bed property in Columbia, Mo. Vesper bought the asset in partnership with an unidentified institutional investor.

Amro Partners and Invesco Real Estate, the global real estate investment management arm of Invesco Ltd., have significantly increased their exposure to the Iberian residential market, acquiring three new student housing projects across Spain with a total Gross Asset Value (GAV) in excess of €150 million.

The University of Minnesota Rochester announced plans to expand its campus to accommodate 2,500 students, more than doubling its current enrollment of 1,122, with two new buildings planned: a high-tech classroom and learning innovation center downtown, and a student housing and recreation facility on university-owned land near Soldiers Field.

Australia’s student housing sector faces record demand driven by rising interstate and international enrolments, yet slow planning and delivery delays are pushing many students into the private rental market, intensifying housing shortages despite PBSA assets operating near full occupancy with strong rent growth.

A joint venture between Värde Partners and Hawkins Way Capital will obtain a $431 million CMBS loan for Monarch Portfolio, a collection comprising three student housing communities in New York City and Boston, according to a Morningstar DBRS report. The properties total 2,407 beds across 1,257 units.

Gilbane, in a public-private partnership with The University of Rhode Island, will develop two on-campus student housing communities and reconstruct a third. The companies reached the financial close of the partnership.

GSA has acquired management of additional investments valued at approximately $200 million, including the Luxembourg-based Coral Student Portfolio, expanding its asset base in the student accommodation sector.

StarRez has launched a global Innovation Hub in Hyderabad, India, to drive AI-driven product development and accelerate its technology roadmap for student housing management worldwide, expanding its global footprint and capabilities.

Landmark Properties, a fully-integrated real estate firm specializing in development, construction, investment management and operation of high-quality residential communities, and Henderson Park, the international private equity real estate manager, have closed on the acquisition of a 1.21-acre site in Charleston, which they will develop into a 335-bed, six-story student housing community adjacent to the College of Charleston.