Amber Beat: Global Student Accommodation Market News - February 2024, Week 04

About Amber Beat

Missed keeping track of all the latest happenings in the student accommodation market?

Amber Beat is a weekly snapshot of the key developments in top student accommodation markets.  This newsletter provides you with all the information you need to know, from new upcoming projects to current trends, news affecting students to government policies, we’ve got you covered!

Amber Beat | News from February 16-February 22

United Kingdom

• Unite Students and Balfour Beatty strike deals worth over £200M to develop 1,899-bedroom university student halls at the University of Sussex (1)
• Unite Students announces £250 million partnership with Newcastle University to deliver 2,000 new bedrooms in the North East city (2)
• DAY Architectural submits proposal to Nottingham City Council for 383 additional scholar beds at The Island Quarter (3)
• Dominus secures £400M loan from Cheyne Capital for development of two PBSAs in London, with Holborn Project to deliver 669 beds and 65 Crutched Friars PBSA scheme comprising under 800 beds, including 35% affordable accommodation for both projects  (4)
• Swish Architecture unveils plan to transform Nottingham's Lace Market into 20-bed student Accommodation consisting of studio and shared apartments (5)
• “Pod-sized” rooms proposed as a new lower-cost PBSA model by Martin Blakey to ease UK student housing pressures, potentially reducing rent up to 25-30 percent, as per a recent HEPI report (6)
• Bristol's Galleries Shopping Centre to transform with 450 mixed-use homes in an ambitious revamp plan by Deeley Freed and LaSalle Investment Management (7)
• Urban Creation extends its partnership with Handelsbanken for the next 5 years, introducing the Urban Student and Urban Apartments sub-brands (8)

United States of America

• Landmark Properties begins construction of ‘The Standard at Los Angeles’, a 1,236-bed student housing community near the University of Southern California campus in LA (9)
• Rael Development Corporation begins construction of a $60 million student housing project, designed to house 636 students, located next to Georgia Southern University's campus (10)
• Melrose Ascension Capital and Q Investment Partners JV secure a $63.7 million loan to develop 18-story, 358-bed, multifamily project targeting students and young professionals, located in Chicago’s South Loop (11)
• Varsity Student Housing REIT rebrands as 'Crew Campus', acquires 'Oso Verde Apartments', a 297-bed student housing complex near Baylor University in Waco, Texas (12)

Australia

• Eight public and private Australian universities rescind admission offers for international students amid government's measures to limit student visas and reduce immigration (13)
• Citiplan and Journal Student Living to develop a 15-story student housing project featuring 464 beds, in Carlton, opposite the University of Melbourne's Parkville campus, designed by Jackson Clement Burrows Architects (14)
• Griffith University's Gold Coast Campus set for a new on-campus student accommodation tower with 459 beds to house almost 1,000 students, expected to be completed by mid-2026 (15)

Europe

• D66's Jan Paternotte secures House of Representatives approval to build 2,000+ student homes near Kronenburg in Netherlands, amidst Amsterdam housing crisis (16)
• Cádiz Free Trade Zone commits €24.6 million investment for student residence with 353 beds, opening in 2026, expected to generate 149 jobs (17)
• Nido Living invests over €140 million for acquisition of Florida Norte Hotel and two new student residences in Spain, Madrid Center with 636 beds and Valencia Center with 253 beds, scheduled to open in 2024 (18)
• ZEITRAUM, an international operator, unveils new student residence 'Solec 22' in Warsaw, offering 214 beds; Zeitgeist's expansion addresses urgent housing needs amidst rising student numbers in Poland (19)
• Pivot Panda purchases a Marseille building to house students and young professionals in France, plans to add one floor and create 21 accommodations by Summer 2024 (20)
• Cork City Council rejects 450-bed student apartment complex due to height and density concerns in Ireland; developer “Lyonshall” appeals for decision to ‘An Bord Pleanála’ (21)

Canada

• Canadian and Quebec Governments declare construction of nearly 300 housing units, with 79 designated for students of Université du Québec en Outaouais, Minister of Higher Education confirms a $6.4 million contribution (22)
• In response to the federal government's decision to limit the intake of international students to 360,000 in 2024, Orillia City Council supports Georgian College's call to end the moratorium on international student visa processing for educational institutions (23)

Sources: ( (1), (2), (3), (4), (5), (6), (7), (8), (9), (10), (11), (12), (13), (14), (15), (16), (17), (18), (19), (20), (21), (22), (23))