Real estate investment manager Orka Investments has acquired a 226-bed purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) scheme in Exeter, via a joint venture with a property investor understood to be Nuveen.
Hill View Place, Exeter
The JV, formed in December 2025, acquired Hill View Place for an undisclosed sum in a deal part funded via a loan from Investec Real Estate.
The asset, which is adjacent to the University of Exeter’s Streatham Campus, opened in 2022 and is fully let for the 2026-27 academic year.
It has a mix of en-suite rooms, studios, townhouses and penthouse apartments, alongside a gym, cinema lounge, games room, communal lounge and outdoor space.
The transaction brings Orka’s PBSA portfolio to 2,080 beds, with the JV’s portfolio now standing at 1,512 beds across four cities, the others being Birmingham, Glasgow and Aberdeen.
Raoul Malhotra, founder and chief executive of Orka, said: “The years when student housing could rely on rapid rent growth are behind us and that changes where returns come from.
“Students now choose between purpose-built accommodation, shared houses, build to rent and living at home. PBSA cannot always win that competition on price alone, so we win it on product, service and flexibility, and a well-located building like Hill View Place gives us everything we need to do that.”
Sebastian Walley, loan originator at Investec, added: “The UK remains a global higher education leader, which has underpinned our over 15-year track record funding high-quality, well-located student schemes.
“We are particularly comfortable supporting sponsors that understand the trends driving customer demand and managing leasing arrangements, as this usually results in a more reliable income stream that performs well across a cycle.”
The JV was advised by Simmons & Simmons and Colliers. Newmark acted for the vendor.
Yesterday (12 October), a joint venture between Bridges Fund Management and ROK Property also secured a £21.3m senior investment loan from Investec to refinance a PBSA scheme in Belfast.