Student housing provider Unite has posted a record set of results as the acute shortage of beds drives demand in the sector.
The business reported earnings of £184.3m in the year ended 31 December 2023, up by 14% on the previous year. The value of its portfolio nudged up by 1.2% on a like-for-like basis to almost £5.5bn.
Occupancy across the group’s portfolio grew from 99.3% to 99.8%, with rental growth more than doubling from 3.5% to 7.4%
Chief executive Joe Lister said: “This is a strong set of results, driven by full occupancy, rental growth and substantial investment into our platform and portfolio. Our pipeline of developments, asset management projects and our new university partnership present a substantial growth opportunity for the business.
“The supply-demand imbalance of student accommodation is acute and continues to intensify. We play a leading role in tackling this shortage, easing pressure on the wider housing market and freeing up homes for families.”
Unite has a development pipeline of some £1.3bn through joint venture partnerships and other projects. Those projects include a £569m commitment to deliver student beds across the Russell Group cities, a £250m joint venture to deliver thousands of new beds for Newcastle University, announced earlier this month, plus a £452m future development pipeline.
Lister said: “We now have our largest ever development pipeline at £1.3bn, focused on delivering new homes in the most supply-constrained markets and aligned to the UK’s strongest universities. The outlook for development is strong and we are tracking a number of further opportunities at attractive returns, which we will look to secure over the next 6-12 months.”
He added: “We are confident in the outlook for the business. Student accommodation is structurally supported by growing demand for higher education and constrained supply, which supports long-term sustainable rental growth and creates significant investment opportunities to deliver new homes.”
Image © Unite Students
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