DFT Opinion Piece: How to make a PBSA scheme stand out from the competition

The purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) sector has matured considerably over the past 10 years.

A lot of new entrants have moved into the sector and while investor appetite remains robust, it has become more important for developers to be able to differentiate their product from the competition if they are to successfully let and exit from a scheme.

At Maslow, we like the PBSA sector and have actively sought to increase our exposure to it by funding the development of some 2,500 beds with an average debt size of £20m in the past three years. Our view is that student accommodation is a defensive asset class, year-on-year rental growth continues to move in the right direction, operating costs are well defined and there are plenty of institutionally backed platforms looking to buy built stock. 

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