The 33,000 sq ft development will have 132 studio rooms as well as communal leisure, study and relaxation areas. Work on the project has begun and it is due for completion by September, ready for the 2014/2015 academic year.
It is the second time the two northwest companies have collaborated on such a project as Create is already working on a £17m Vita Student refurbishment scheme in Exeter, called Portland House.
Vita Ventures CEO Trevor Moore said: “The refurbishment work that Create Construction has undertaken so far at Portland House is exemplary so it was an obvious choice to appoint them to this project. We are confident that they will deliver it to the standard our students and investors expect, within the timescale specified.”
Vita Ventures’ business model is structured so the 132 studios are sold to private investors and then let out on their behalf to students. The aim is that the buyer benefits from both rental income and capital appreciation. The company was established in 2012 by international property investment specialist Select Property, with house-builder Huntsmere.
Mr Moore added: “We have a forecast to double our number of student beds in 2014 so we need to acquire a large amount of land to fulfil this. We have agents actively scouring the UK for suitable sites near to the top Russell Group universities, with Sheffield, Edinburgh and Glasgow currently under consideration.”
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