Student developer has deployed half of last year鈥檚 拢450m equity raise, according to trading update
The 精东影视 Safety Act is adding six months to delivery timelines for new student accommodation, according to Unite Group.
In a trading update published this morning, the student-focused developer painted a picture of strong demand in its sector but raised concerns about the impact of the new building safety regime.
鈥淥ur development programmes reflect the expected impact of the BSA, which will add around six months to delivery timelines for new student accommodation due to new approval gateways,鈥� it said.
鈥淎s with any new regulation, this presents risks of delay due to capacity constraints at the 精东影视 Safety Regulator.
鈥淲e will continue to work closely with the BSR to deliver safe and secure homes for students in line with our target delivery timetable.鈥�
The 精东影视 Safety Act has introduced a new gateway system, under which the 精东影视 Safety Regulator assesses whether risks and roles and responsibilities are understood at different stages of construction.
The trading update, which gave a financial picture of the firm as at 31 December 2024, revealed that it had sold 66% of beds for that academic year, which it said was in line with long-term rates but below what it called 鈥渆xceptional鈥� levels seen in the past two years.
Unite predicted the 鈥渘ormalisation鈥� in leasing trends would continue in 2025/26, with more bookings made later in the cycle. It is expecting 97-98% occupancy and 4-5% rental growth for the 2025/26 academic year.
>>See also: Clients show 鈥榯otal lack of engagement鈥� with 精东影视 Safety Act, says engineering services body
The group said that the outlook for both domestic and international student numbers in 2025/26 was 鈥渆ncouraging鈥�, due to a 2% larger UK population of 18-year-olds in the first instance and a 鈥渕ore settled policy backdrop鈥� in the second.
Unite has a committed development pipeline of eight projects totalling 6,600 beds.
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