- The company has secured senior debt financing with UK-based Maslow Capital, a leading provider of real estate development finance
- QIP are working with their co-investment partners and local delivery management team DML Development Managers Ltd, a London based real estate firm who took the scheme through planning and are responsible for project execution
- Robertson has been appointed as the main contractor. Construction started in Q1 2019 and will be completed for occupation in Sep 2020.
- Demand for UK Student Accommodation assets remains strong, despite the uncertainties around Brexit
Singapore-based Q Investment Partners announced today that they have secured debt finance from UK development lender Maslow Capital for their purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) development in Nottingham, UK.
UK construction business Robertson, one of the largest family owned construction businesses in the UK is confirmed as the main contractor and commenced works in Q1 2019 under a fixed-price contract.
“We are excited to continue our journey in the purpose-built student accommodation sector with our local delivery partners DML Development Managers Ltd. This project increases our development portfolio to 600 beds for 2019 and we are on track to more than double this in 2020, says Ben Hall, Head of Investment of Q Investment Partners.
QIP’s PBSA development in Sheffield was launched and closed in July 2017.
Despite the uncertainties surrounding Brexit, investor interest in UK PBSA remains strong.
In fact, a record number of international students have been accepted onto degree courses in the UK, underpinned by a 32% rise in accepted applicants from China, recent UCAS data has revealed.
“We have seen more investor queries now than before – the defensiveness of the student accommodation sector has been very attractive in an increasingly volatile macro-environment,” says Hall.
For its Nottingham project, QIP has secured GBP20m of debt finance from development lender Maslow Capital.
“The team at Maslow possess very strong market expertise and internal product knowledge,” says Hall. “They are great partners to work with and will take a highly practical approach to get deals over the line,” he adds.
Sky Mapson, Head of Maslow’s PBSA lending division says, “QIP is an extremely professional and experienced partner to work with. This is an exciting transaction for us, PBSA in the UK has emerged as a major asset class as institutional investors recognise how rewarding yet defensive it can be.”
Commenting on Maslow’s suitability to the project, CEO & Co-Founder Ellis Sher added “PBSA continues to be a success story for the UK real estate sector. With Maslow’s rapid decision making, rigorous due diligence and deep knowledge of the development process, we remain well placed to support both new and existing clients to bring their plans to fruition. From our perspective, it is great to see experienced developers like Q Investment Partners actively supporting the needs of universities and their students now and into the future”.
Selecting the right construction partner was no easy feat – the QIP team wanted to work with a contractor with an outstanding track record in the UK PBSA sector.
After receiving proposals from six prospective contractors, Robertson was recommended by DML and finally chosen as the preferred main contractor.
Rachel Warren, DML’s development director, says, “We are very impressed with Robertson’s approach. Their knowledge of supply chain and state-of-the-art construction methods have been instrumental in shortening the delivery programme and driving project costs down. Robertson has considerable experience in the sector, and we are pleased to be working with them.”
Robertson has delivered over 7,600 units in the PBSA sector and recently developed 437 beds at Nova Nottingham which was 100% let within its first year of opening.
Paul Turner, Managing Director of Robertson Yorkshire & East Midlands, said, “We have been working in the PBSA arena for a number of years and are pleased to be able to bring our expertise and experience to this prime site in Nottingham. We pride ourselves on our ability to build and deliver quality student housing and drive value for investors. This is our first project with QIP and DML and we look forward to fostering a strong and successful relationship with them.”
About Q Investment Partners
QIP is a Singapore-based private equity real estate firm. With deep expertise in the capital and real estate markets, our team of investment professionals offers institutional and professional investors unique opportunities to invest or co-invest alongside us in strategic sectors.
About Maslow Capital
Maslow Capital is a leading provider of real estate development finance. We offer flexible funding solutions for professional developers across the UK undertaking residential, mixed- used, student, hotel and industrial developments. We pride ourselves on transparent decision-making, consistent delivery and developing long-term relationships with like-minded brokers and developers.
About Robertson
We’re one of the largest family-owned construction, infrastructure and support services businesses in the UK, and we apply the same principles to every aspect of our business today that we did over fifty years ago when Bill Robertson set up his joinery firm in Elgin.
Over the years our sustainable growth has enabled us to invest in our business, the future of people and communities, and to deliver on major projects, housing schemes and facilities management for customers nationally.
Our scale gives us the ability to accept big challenges, and build deep, mutually beneficial partner relationships. At the same time we think locally, working with stakeholders and the supply chain to deliver services and infrastructure that will stand the test of time.
Ultimately, everything we do is about making progress safely towards a sustainable future for our people, communities and our business. It’s the Robertson Way.