Acquisition

Unite Group PLC
09 February 2007

9 February 2007


                              The UNITE Group plc

                          UNITE SECURES £114.5 MILLION
                        STUDENT ACCOMMODATION PORTFOLIO

The UNITE Group plc, the UK's leading student hospitality company, today
announces the securing of a £114.5 million portfolio of student accommodation
from Base Limited, a student accommodation operator, which adds further strength
in a number of the Group's key markets.  The transaction comprises the
acquisition of a portfolio of five operational student accommodation properties
for a total cash consideration of £76.4 million, as well as the exchange of
contracts on an option to buy the shares of a company controlled by Base
Limited, which is developing student accommodation in Manchester for a total
future cash consideration of £38.1 million.


Details of the transaction are as follows:


•         UNITE has exchanged unconditionally on the acquisition of five
properties for £76.4 million, four of which will be acquired through units in
Isle of Man Unit Trusts.  Completion is scheduled for 28 February 2007 and at
least 75% of the consideration will be funded through the arrangement of
additional debt facilities.  The completed portfolio has a total of 1,502 bed
spaces over 5 properties in Liverpool, Leicester and Sheffield and currently
generates an estimated net annual income of £3.7 million.  The properties are
all currently over 98% occupied and UNITE will manage them on an ongoing basis.
Three of the assets are located adjacent to existing UNITE properties and the
Group plans to operate these as enlarged schemes.  Taking synergy benefits into
account the Group considers rental growth prospects across the acquired
portfolio to be strong.



•         UNITE has also exchanged contracts on an option to buy the shares of
a company controlled by Base Ltd, which is developing a 717 bed property in
Manchester.  UNITE will pay a nominal fee of £170,000 on exchanging the option,
which needs to be exercised by 31 July 2007.  On exercising the option, UNITE
will pay a cash deposit of £1.9 million and on completion of the transaction, at
practical completion of the development scheduled in 2008, UNITE will pay the
remaining £36.0 million cash consideration.  UNITE anticipates that the net rent
from this property for the 2008/09 academic year will be approximately £2.2
million and plans to fund the future acquisition through a combination of
retained equity and bank finance.  The new development is located immediately
adjacent to an existing 671 bedroom UNITE property and, if acquired, would offer
compelling synergetic benefits.



Reflecting the complementary nature of the acquired portfolio to existing UNITE
owned properties all of the assets will be owned and operated by UNITE outright.
They will not be acquired by the recently launched UNITE UK Student
Accommodation Fund.





Mark Allan, Chief Executive of UNITE, commented:



'We are very excited about the acquisition of these properties, which are
complementary to our existing portfolio and offer a number of opportunities in
terms of marriage value.  We anticipate managing these assets long-term and plan
to align the funding of the properties with the adjacent sites over time.  This
will enable UNITE to leverage synergies and increase its presence in key student
markets. In particular, the visibility of the Manchester site, adjacent to
Mancunian Way, and the opportunities in the Liverpool portfolio will give UNITE
a clear long-term strategic advantage.'





                                      ENDS

Enquiries:

The UNITE Group plc
Mark Allan / Tabitha Aldrich-Smith                Tel: [phone]

Financial Dynamics
Stephanie Highett / Dido Laurimore                Tel: [phone]




Notes to Editors:


UNITE is the UK's leading student hospitality company.  Listed in the FTSE 250
index of the London Stock Exchange, and with a property portfolio under
management valued at some £1.4 billion located across the United Kingdom, the
Group focuses on the provision and management of high quality, well-located
student accommodation and hospitality services in strong higher education
markets.



UNITE delivers the real student experience, whilst at the same time helping to
regenerate cities as part of the community and contributing to the improvement
of the country's housing.  It undertakes the planning, development and
management of sites, often working closely with the universities and colleges,
to deliver accommodation for students across all ages and nationalities. UNITE
developments typically show high occupancy levels and robust rental growth as
demand continues to rise for places in UK Higher Education and for safe, high
quality accommodation for students.

Further information on UNITE is available at www.unite-group.co.uk


                      This information is provided by RNS
            The company news service from the London Stock Exchange