One of the first companies to forge the student housing frontier is making steady strides toward a new horizon.
GMH Capital Partners was the largest student housing owner in the nation before selling its entire portfolio to American Campus Communities in 2008 for $1.4 billion. Prior to exiting the market, GMH had more than 60,000 student beds in 29 states.
They signed a “do not compete” that expired in 2012, and ever since they’ve been strategically striding back into the space.
They started with the acquisition of a 23 acre lot in Salisbury, Md., adjacent to Salisbury University, where they soon constructed a 696-bed community now known as University Orchard. The purpose built facility rents rooms that are all-inclusive—really all-inclusive. That means for the price of rent students can enjoy furnished apartments, complete with all appliances including a 47 inch LED flatscreen television, parking, high speed internet, campus shuttles, and all the perks of the community’s extensive luxury amenities. Of course, all utilities (including cable) are included as well.
With an established new foothold in the market, GMH recently announced a new partnership with Principal Real Estate Investors for targeting student housing. The strategic joint venture platform was formed in order to further each company’s goals of pursuing student housing opportunities in various markets throughout the United States. The partnership aims to acquire and/or develop up to $650 million worth of student housing assets over the next 12 to 18 months across three asset categories—Existing Core Communities, Value-Add, and Development.
This month, that partnership takes a stride in that direction with the acquisition of The Rise at Northgate, a towering 18-story, 484-bed development in College Station, Texas, formerly owned by Asset Campus Housing.
The Newton Square, Pa.-based company was founded by Gary Holloway Sr. in 1985, and from its inception took an active interest in niche market strategies that took them away from investing norms. GMH bought its first student living community in 1986, long before other multifamily real estate companies saw anything profitable in the collegiate market.
Over the next 22 years, they would establish the new standard for student housing strategies. Many of those strategies, such as bed-by-bed leasing and comprehensive utilities packaging, have only now become the norm in luxury student accommodations.
The early student housing titan is now pioneering in new areas, even as it resumes its quest among student housing markets. Specifically, they’re in the process of exploring new opportunities in high-end drug and alcohol rehabilitation centers.
That market is still in nascent stages, but then, so was student housing before GMH got involved.
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