TPG Real Estate Partners and Urbania have acquired a portfolio of three student accommodation assets in Spain. The joint venture will operate under the BCOME brand. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. The porfolio comprises approximately 1,000 units across three Spanish cities: Madrid, Pamplona, and Salamanca. BCOME Pamplona opened in September 2021 and the other two assets are development projects. The sites are situated in Spain’s prime university cities and will help meet growing demand across the country for high-quality student accommodation. The properties consist exclusively of studio rooms with en suite bathrooms, complemented by a comprehensive set of amenities, including several common areas as well as game rooms, gyms, and pools.
TREP and Urbania will target further opportunities in line with the Venture’s strategy to acquire existing assets and develop new, purpose-built properties across select university cities in Spain. The Venture will draw upon the collective expertise of TREP and Urbania in developing and managing institutional European real estate portfolios. TREP is currently active in student housing in Germany and Portugal through its Campus Living platform and Lumino development, respectively.
Michael Abel, Partner at TREP, commented: “We have been studying the student housing market in Continental Europe for many years, and we are pleased to partner with Urbania to build an institutional portfolio of scale that provides students across Spain with affordable, high-quality living options. Despite the growing number of domestic and international students, Spain remains one of the most undersupplied European markets in terms of purpose-built student accommodation.”
Alberto Lopez, Partner at Urbania, commented: “We are delighted to be partnering with TREP in a joint mission to raise the quality of purpose-built student accommodation assets across the IBERIA market. TREP’s deep investment expertise complements our local market experience and capabilities, which span development to operations. We rapidly established ourselves as a first mover in this market and have a proven ability to deliver best-in-class student hospitality. We look forward to a forging a strong partnership with TREP.”
