Unite Group sells Bloomsbury property for £135m

Unite Group, a developer of student accommodation, has sold a property in London's Bloomsbury to GCP Student Living for £135m.

The sale of Woburn Place in central London, which comprises of comprises 427 bedrooms, is part of Unite's strategy to take advantage of the strength of the investment market in order to recycle £150-£200m worth of assets during 2017.

Woburn Place is owned in buy its LSAV joint venture and the £135m reflects a value per bedroom of £316,000, which is an initial net yield of 4.5% and a 6% premium to the book value.

As part of the deal, Unite will receive £67.5m, from the £135m share price and will use the proceeds to fund its development pipeline and further investment into higher quality properties such as the recently acquired on-campus accommodation at Aston University.

Following the sale, Unite’s loan-to-value ratio will fall to 32%.

Unite’s property director Richard Simpson said: "We will continue to invest in our highly accretive development pipeline and to target further acquisitions that enhance the quality of our portfolio and support earnings growth. Our strategy remains focused on high quality universities, where we see the most long-term growth."