USAF VALUATION

RNS Number : 1036O

Unite Group PLC

08 October 2012

 



PRESS RELEASE 8 October 2012

 

THE UNITE GROUP PLC

("UNITE", the "Group", or the "Company")

30 SEPTEMBER 2012 VALUATION OF

THE UNITE UK STUDENT ACCOMMODATION FUND

The UNITE Group plc, the UK's leading developer and manager of student accommodation, today reports the Estimated Net Asset Value* ("NAV") of the UNITE UK Student Accommodation Fund (the "Fund", "USAF") as at 30 September 2012.

The NAV as at 30 September 2012 was £669.6m, reflecting an increase of 1.5% during the third quarter of 2012 (30 June 2012: £660.0m).

The principal components of the movement in NAV were as follows:

Effect on NAV:	Q3 2012
Movement in property values	1.2%
Movement in swap values	0.2%
Other factors	0.1%
Increase in NAV	1.5%
Increase in underlying gross property portfolio value	1.1%

In arriving at the value of the Fund, its property portfolio, which comprises 21,349 beds in 59 properties across 20 UK towns and cities, was independently valued at £1,285m.

The value of the assets held throughout the quarter increased by 0.7% due to continued rental growth since 30 June 2012. Further growth in values of 0.4% was achieved through the refurbishment of one property during the quarter and the creation of an additional 69 beds at another. The increase in the value of the property portfolio, after taking account of the capital cost of refurbishment, lifecycle expenditure and gearing resulted in the 1.2% growth in the NAV as outlined in the table above. Rental growth for the 2012/13 academic year, combined with asset management activities, have resulted in an increase in property values of 3.3% over the past 12 months. Valuation yields again remained stable during the quarter at 6.67%.

Reservations activity for the 2012/13 academic year has continued over a longer period than in previous years as a result of disruption caused by the introduction of changes to Higher Education funding and, as a result, we are still taking bookings across the portfolio. Taking account of current occupancy and ongoing lettings activity, we expect the final occupancy across the Fund's portfolio to be in the range of 95-96% and income levels to be in line with plan.

Commenting on the Fund's valuation, Joe Lister, UNITE's Chief Financial Officer, said:

"USAF has delivered another strong performance in the third quarter of 2012 driven by ongoing rental growth and augmented by accretive asset management activity. This has ensured that property values have now increased by 3.3% over the past 12 months."

* Estimated Net Asset Value represents the capital position of the Fund and does not include undistributed income.

ENDS

For further information, please contact:

The UNITE Group plc Joe Lister, Chief Financial Officer Paul Harris, Communications Director Sally Quigg, Head of Corporate Communications	Tel: [phone]
FTI Consulting Stephanie Highett Dido Laurimore Faye Walters	Tel: [phone]

About The UNITE Group 

The UNITE Group is the UK's leading developer and manager of student accommodation, with a business model that focuses on two core areas:

1.         Development and Asset Management: UNITE undertakes the acquisition, planning and development of purpose-built student accommodation in the UK. Through the continuous assessment of quality and location of its investment portfolio, UNITE is well positioned to deliver value-adding strategies to those assets where further opportunities are identified. Working on behalf of its partners, UNITE acts as Fund Manager for the UNITE UK Student Accommodation Fund in which it owns a 16.3% share. UNITE also manages a number of Joint Venture partnerships.

2.         Professional property management: UNITE is home to 42,000 students in over 130 properties across 23 of the UK's strongest university cities, and has consistently proven high occupancy levels across its portfolio.

The Group works closely with higher education institutions in order to deliver high quality, well-located student accommodation at affordable prices in strong higher education markets. In 2012 UNITE won the South West Business in the Community Carbon Reduction Award for its environmental initiatives and the Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB) named UNITE as a regional sector leader for sustainability.

Founded in 1991, UNITE is a FTSE 250 company listed on the London Stock Exchange (UTG). For more information, please visit www.unite-group.co.uk or www.unite-students.com.  

 

END

 

 

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