The geographical location of an attractive Purpose Built Student Housing (PBSH) investment target is reliant upon a number of key criteria. At the same time, it is intimately linked, for obvious reasons, to local higher education markets.

The United States and the United Kingdom are clearly mature PBSH markets. While still providing valuable returns for investors, yields have got thinner and greater competition among universities and colleges is requiring asset selection skills par excellence. Countries in Western Europe such as Germany, France, Spain and the Netherlands, have felt these same ripples heading their way.

Investors who are seeking higher returns, more affordability and greater development flexibility are therefore investigating less mature markets. As a result, PBSH — now a mainstream asset class in its own right — with its enduring fundamentals and established, yet transferable business models, is heading eastwards.

Defining Central an