ActivumSG and TMGH launch €575m UK PBSA platform

European real estate investment manager ActivumSG has partnered with UK student accommodation operator, The Mansion Group Holdings (TMGH), to launch a new platform targeting over £500 mln (€575 mln) in UK student housing. 

The Union

The new platform will focus on acquiring, modernizing, and consolidating existing purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) properties.
The initiative aims to capitalize on the high demand for quality student housing in the UK, especially as new developments face planning and viability challenges. The platform's strategy is to add value by upgrading older properties—many of which were built before 2012—to meet modern safety and sustainability standards. These upgrades will ensure the properties remain appealing to both domestic and international students.
The platform has already acquired seven properties with 972 beds and a gross asset value exceeding £100 mln (€115 mln). These assets are located in key university cities like Manchester, Edinburgh, Exeter, and Cardiff, with about 90% of their income linked to Russell Group universities. The new venture has a strong pipeline of additional properties, valued at around £600 mln (€690 mln), and aims to rapidly expand its portfolio. All properties will be managed by TMGH's "Mansion Student" brand.
Saul Goldstein, founder and CEO, ActivumSG, said: “The UK student accommodation sector is uniquely positioned to benefit from a positive realignment of people and capital flows into Europe, with this confluence making the market a highly appealing destination for international investment. This new platform will benefit from our deep, multi-layered expertise in the European accommodation sectors, including both living and hospitality-focused real estate. We believe now is an excellent time to be buying assets with strong fundamentals in good locations where we can unlock further potential by improving operational performance and making sustainability-related upgrades. Our initial acquisitions and plans to scale the platform further are proof of this conviction.”
James de Lusignan, managing director, UK, ActivumSG, commented: “The UK student accommodation market has emerged as a preferred geographic-and-sector combination for institutional investors, with future growth underpinned by the undersupply of student beds relative to anticipated future demand. The large share of pre-2012 assets in use combined with challenges related to viability in developing new assets, creates a huge opportunity in terms of repositioning existing stock. This presents an attractive avenue through which experienced value-add investment managers like us can create a differentiated investment proposition. Our strategy will see us implement upgrades to standing assets to align them with modern-day building and sustainability standards, while providing attainably priced accommodation for students.”
Shankar Ramanathan, founder and CEO, The Mansion Group Holdings, added: “ActivumSG’s proven track record in European living real estate across both corporate and direct investments will prove immensely beneficial as we look to scale the seed portfolio into a market-leading platform, acquiring, refurbishing/repositioning, and aggregating well-located existing PBSA assets. Our partnership has been structured to incentivise genuine collaboration and create a true alignment of interests, which we believe will be vital to the long-term success of the platform.”
UK-based PBSA developer and manager TMGH has acquired in excess of 11,000 student beds with various global capital partners.