Hines and Blue Noble to Invest in Second Student Housing Development in Milan

(MILAN) – Hines, the international real estate firm, has made its second entry into the Italian student housing market, with the acquisition of a site near Bocconi University, Milan, to develop a 650-bed accommodation facility.

The investment is part of a joint venture between Hines and Blue Noble, an independent real estate investment management company. The acquisition is Hines and Blue Noble’s second student housing investment in Italy following the via Giovenale acquisition in March 2018. The joint venture is continuing to assess opportunities in the student housing sector in the main Italian university cities, with Rome, Florence and Venice targeted alongside Milan.

The anticipated development aims to provide 650 plus student beds with modern spaces and services, including common areas, study rooms, library, cinema and gym.

Blue Noble will act as portfolio manager and the asset will be managed directly by Hines through Aparto, the company’s dedicated student accommodation operating platform, which currently operates 1,400 student beds in the UK and Ireland, with an additional pipeline of 3,600 beds across Europe.

Located a 10-minute walk from Bocconi, at the corner of via Ripamonti and Viale Isonzo, the scheme will also offer “micro-living” units: micro apartments and rooms targeting young professionals in need of short-term accommodation.

Development of the new scheme is anticipated to commence in late 2018 with completion expected by the end of 2021.

Lars Huber, CEO of Hines Europe, said “The student housing market continues to offer an attractive investment proposition and we look forward to growing our portfolio across key markets in Europe. Italy is a core market and we are excited to announce our second acquisition through this joint venture with Blue Noble representing a series of investments in core cities across the country with growing and dynamic student populations.”

Mario Abbadessa, Italy country head for Hines, said: “We are extremely pleased with this investment, which demonstrates Hines’ focus on Italy and, specifically, the student housing sector. We see a wide gap between supply and demand in Italy, in terms of available accommodation and particularly in terms of its quality, sustainability and flexibility. Our goal is to provide innovative solutions to the different needs of students, foreigners and young professionals. Over the next two years, we aim to invest €500 million in the main Italian university cities.”

Paul Forshaw, CEO of Blue Noble, added: “We are very pleased to confirm the acquisition of our second proposed student housing development in Milan, working alongside Hines Italy. As investor and portfolio manager, Blue Noble is excited about the prospect of matching a compelling investment proposition with the ability to make a meaningful contribution to the provision of short-term accommodation in the city.”

About Blue Noble

Blue Noble LLP (‘Blue Noble’ is an independent, full service real estate investment management company, authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (‘FCA’), Firm Reference Number 789552. Based in London, Blue Noble acquires and manages physical property investments on behalf of high net worth individuals, family offices and institutional investors targeting real estate assets across the risk spectrum. Direct investments are acquired via club deals, segregated accounts and Blue Noble managed funds.

Blue Noble was founded in 2017 by four experienced real estate professionals who, during their tenure at one of the world’s largest banks, were responsible for, and transacted, in excess of USD 5 billion of real estate investments across the UK, Europe and US. Blue Noble was launched in a strategic partnership with Swiss based investment firm Woodman Group. Blue Noble currently manages over $550m of real estate assets and new capital on behalf of clients.

Visit www.bluenoble.co.uk for more information about the firm.

About Hines

Hines is a privately owned global real estate investment firm founded in 1957 with a presence in 201 cities in 24 countries. Hines has approximately $111 billion of assets under management, including $60 billion for which Hines provides fiduciary investment management services, and $51 billion for which Hines provides third-party property-level services. The firm has 108 developments currently underway around the world. Historically, Hines has developed, redeveloped or acquired 1,295 properties, totaling over 422 million square feet. The firm’s current property and asset management portfolio includes 506 properties, representing over 210 million square feet. With extensive experience in investments across the risk spectrum and all property types, and a pioneering commitment to sustainability, Hines is one of the largest and most-respected real estate organizations in the world.

Since entering Europe in 1991, Hines has grown its European platform to include a presence in 55 cities in 13 countries and Hines Europe currently has over €15.0 billion of assets under management in Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Spain and the United Kingdom.