Round Hill Capital acquires 368-bed student scheme in Liberties

Global property investment firm Round Hill Capital and NBK Capital have acquired a 368-bed student accommodation development in the Liberties area of Dublin 8.

The site was purchased from Summix, an urban mixed-use regeneration project specialist, with whom Round Hill Capital plans to partner on additional student accommodation developments in Ireland.

Round Hill said the development, located on the former Brewery Block site adjacent to Newmarket Square, will preserve protected structures.

The new Henry J Lyons-designed building will integrate a five-storey red brick tower and the façade of the now derelict warehouses that currently occupy part of the site. The project has a gross development value of €85 million.

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Construction of the new development will commence in July following the completion of demolition works. It will take two years, ready for occupation in September 2022 and in time for the 2022/23 academic year.

The project will deliver student accommodation into a market where the Higher Education Authority estimated in 2015 that over 11,000 new student beds were needed by 2024.

The development is well-located for access and transport links to third-level colleges, including Trinity College Dublin (TCD), University College Dublin (UCD) and Technological University Dublin (TUI).

Round Hill said it will provide residents with “high-quality services and amenities”, including 24-hour security, 200Mbps Wi-Fi, a 24/7 gym, a cinema room, bike storage, study areas, year-round events programmes and new landscaped outdoor spaces.

Nido Student will manage the development, an established operational platform and brand for European student accommodation.

This is Round Hill Capital’s third student accommodation investment in Ireland, following the acquisition of a 145-bed development on Farranlea Road in Cork in December 2018 which was delivered in a strategic planning partnership with Summix.

Round Hill has also invested in a 216-unit apartment development called Bridgefield in Santry, Dublin 9. The firm currently has under development over 7,000 apartments and student accommodation beds in the UK, Spain, Portugal, Sweden, the Netherlands and Ireland.

Round Hill established its Irish office in 2018 and said it has significant capital to deploy into its pipeline of investment opportunities in the local build-to-rent and purpose-built student accommodation sectors in Ireland and across Europe.

Round Hill Capital founder and chief executive Michael Bickford said the company recognised the supply constraints in the sector currently.

“We recognise that areas of the student and residential housing markets in Ireland suffer from persisting structural supply constraints and we look forward to helping alleviate these pressures,” he said.

NBK chief executive Faisal Al-Hamad said: “Dublin is an attractive city with quality higher education institutes, and we are pleased to be able to play a part in developing and supporting the local and wider community.”