Maven Investor Partners network buys Nottingham property for £3.7m

Maven Investor Partners have funded the purchase of a 28,000 ft² building in Nottingham city centre for £3.7 million from a South African-listed property fund. The acquisition is in line with Maven’s strategy to target properties with value-add potential across key UK regions.

The three storey building, 191-195 Lower Parliament Street, benefits from rental income from two retail units which are currently let to two well-known high street retailers.

Situated in a prime location in the heart of the city’s retail, leisure, and entertainment area, opposite the Victoria Shopping Centre, the building offers significant opportunity for re-development above the retail units.

Planning permission will be sought to create a purpose built student accommodation (PBSA) development on first and additional upper levels while retaining the ground floor retail units. Nottingham has 59,400 full time students and is home to two well-regarded universities, the University of Nottingham and Nottingham Trent University, ranked 21st and 40^th respectively in the Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2020. The city is currently undersupplied with 55% of students unable to access purpose built accommodation (source: Knight Frank, 2020).

Demand for PBSA is less likely to be impacted in the wake of the pandemic, with historical data on student enrolment highlighting its resilience. Indeed, a reduction in the number of job opportunities during periods of economic downturn have previously seen an uptick in enrolment figures. Moreover, student mobility is expected to stage a recovery from the beginning of the 2021-22 academic year, suggesting that PBSA in the UK’s university cities retains its considerable capacity for value-addition in the long term (source: Bonard, 2020).

Maven has extensive experience in the PBSA sector where it has developed, managed and operated properties across the UK, in cities including Glasgow, Dundee, Durham, Liverpool, and Birmingham.

“The strong ongoing demand for purpose built student accommodation from both domestic and overseas students underpins our continued interest in this sector.  Reports suggest an increase in applications to UK universities again this year, further supporting the evidence of individuals investing in higher education in uncertain times. Nottingham is one of the largest regional student cities and we are delighted to be pushing forward with a planning application to provide an excellent base for students looking to enjoy all the benefits of city centre living.”

Andrew Whiteley, Partner at Maven, said: