Acquires student accomodation in Hatfield

RNS Number : 1184Y

Empiric Student Property PLC

27 November 2014

 



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27 November 2014

Empiric Student Property plc

("Empiric" or the "Company" or, together with its subsidiaries, the "Group")

ESP acquires student accommodation property in Hatfield: Curzon Point

The Board of Empiric Student Property plc (ticker: ESP) is pleased to announce that the Group has exchanged contracts to acquire a 199 year lease on a direct-let, premium student accommodation property in Hatfield, Hertfordshire, for a consideration of £9.4 million. The acquisition is expected to complete on or about 17 December 2014.

Curzon Point is an operating, purpose-built student accommodation property on The Common in Hatfield. The property, which was completed in August 2013, comprises 116 beds arranged in both individual studios and apartment configurations with communal facilities and has been fully occupied since completion. The property also includes a retail unit on the ground floor which is let to Pizza Hut on a 20 year lease.  It is situated in a good, central location and is currently the only existing private-sector direct-let scheme available to students at the University of Hertfordshire, which is included in The Times Higher Education 100 Under 50¹. 

The property is 100 per cent. let for the 2014/15 academic year and is managed by Corporate Residential Management Limited.

Paul Hadaway, Chief Executive of Empiric Student Property plc, commented:

"The University of Hertfordshire, with approximately 25,000 students, has a high proportion of post-graduate students, coupled with a thriving international student community.  This demographic creates a demand profile which, combined with a lack of supply of direct-let purpose-built student accommodation, makes Curzon Point an exciting acquisition for the Company, in line with its investment criteria and returns profile."

¹ A ranking of the top 100 international universities under 50 years old.

For further information on the Company, please contact:

Empiric Student Property plc	(via Newgate Communications)
Paul Hadaway (Chief Executive)
Tim Attlee (Chief Investment Officer)
Michael Enright (Chief Financial Officer)
Akur Limited (Joint Financial Adviser)	Tel: [phone]
Tom Frost
Anthony Richardson
Siobhan Sergeant
Jefferies International Limited (Joint Financial Adviser and Broker)	Tel: [phone]
Gary Gould
Stuart Klein
Alex Collins
Newgate Communications (Financial PR)	Tel: [phone]
James Benjamin	Em: [e-mail]
Clotilde Gros
Georgia Lewis

Further information on ESP can be found on the Company's website at www.espreit.co.uk.

Notes:

Empiric Student Property plc (incorporated in England & Wales) is an internally managed real estate investment trust ("REIT") investing in modern, premium, student accommodation, with a focus on quality and with assets generally in prime central locations in top university cities and towns in the UK.  The Company listed on the premium listing segment of the Official List of the Financial Conduct Authority and was admitted to trading on the main market for listed securities of the London Stock Exchange in June 2014. 

 

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