Macquarie and Cordet back student accommodation

Macquarie Lending has arranged a structured £35m stretch senior facility for Victus European Student Accommodation Fund, which owns nine student properties across Europe, according to a statement from the firm.

Cordet, a provider of private debt and alternative funding based in London and Stockholm, partnered with Macquarie to fund a minority portion of the facility.

The facility has been structured to allow for equity release to fund future developments as well as enabling Victus to refinance existing property development debt.

Three city centre assets in Bristol and Newcastle, described as high quality, secure the facility. Two buildings recently achieved practical completion and are fully rented with a third building scheduled for completion in late 2015. The financing was arranged within a six week period.

Andrew Henton, chairman of the Victus Board, said: “Macquarie Lending’s ability to execute bespoke and complex deals meant that this facility was structured in a way that supports our overall strategic direction. The student accommodation sector presents significant opportunity for investment in key university towns across the UK and Europe. The strong return on these types of properties has been well-reported but there is still significant undersupply of quality stock in prime locations. We are ideally placed to take advantage of and maximise the opportunities in the market.”

The transaction is Macquarie’s second student housing financing in the last 18 months. It provided financing for King Square Studios, Bristol in October 2013.