Occupancy levels at student accommodation owner and operator Empiric Student Property remain depressed as Covid continues to take its toll on the sector.
The group said that revenue occupancy across its portfolio was currently 65%, with bookings for the 2021/22 academic year at 40%. It said that while this was lower than in pre-Covid cycles, it was seeing a gradual improvement in bookings and was cautiously optimistic about a return to increasingly normal levels of occupancy.
UCAS applications for the 2021/22 academic year are showing encouraging growth, said Empiric, with the non-EU international market up by 17% overall. Chinese applications were up by 21% and UK domestic applications up by 11%.
Chief executive Duncan Garrood said: “The successful vaccination programme, the ongoing lifting of restrictions and the encouraging recent UCAS applications for the 2021/22 academic year, leave us cautiously optimistic about a return to more usual occupancy levels, albeit with sales expected to be significantly back ended for the forthcoming academic year.”
Empiric is also pushing forward with its plan to offload around £100m of non-core assets from its portfolio with the £11m sale of one of its assets in Exeter. So far this year, the group has sold £18m of non-core property.
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