GSA Investment Management and Chicago-based real estate private equity firm Harrison Street Real Estate Capital have launched a €250m (£181m) Dublin student accommodation joint venture.
The jv’s first development will be Mill Street, Dublin 8. The 400-room project was recently granted planning permission.
GSA’s Dublin-based team will develop and operate the scheme while its newly created investment management arm will be responsible for the management of the jv.
Harrison Street has invested in more than 60,000 student beds in the US, valued at more than $4.4bn (£2.9bn).
In June, it raised €135m for its European property fund, targeting the acquisition and development of student housing properties throughout Europe.
“Dublin offers a unique opportunity to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns for investors similar to those experienced over the past decade in the US,” said Christopher Merrill, president and chief executive of Harrison
GSA Group was set up by Nicholas Porter, the founder of Unite Students, in 2013, to take advantage of growing global demand for student accommodation.
“This is the first scheme of a substantial portfolio in Dublin which will bring forward much-needed student accommodation stock in the city and other global hotspots,” said Porter.
