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After Carcavelos, Austrians at Milestone to Invest in Student Residences in Porto
25 September 2018
Milestone, which belongs to the Austrian group Value One, is developing a residential project for students at the university campus in Paranhos, Porto. The building is in an advanced stage of construction and is expected to have 220 single and double rooms. The development is scheduled to for the beginning of the 2019/20 school year.
The Austrian group already has a presence in Portugal and intends to increase its investments in the country in the short term. Pedro Machado, the company’s senior project manager, told idealista/news that Milestone is, for example, “the operator of the Student Residence of the Carcavelos Campus of Universidade Nova, in a joint venture with a company in the group.”
The Universidade Nova residence has 122 rooms and opened in August. Prices range from 545 euros – for rooms with at least 20 square meters (m2) – up to 695 euros, including the cost of expenses and services made available by the operator.
Meanwhile, Milestone’s residence in Paranhos is in the high-end segment of the private university housing market, Mr Machado said, revealing a little of another of Value One’s projects in Portugal. “The construction of a 199-room residence in Lombos, Carcavelos, Lisbon began in September,” he said, noting that the company has other projects in its pipeline, “in the hotel sector as well.”
Exceptional location in Paranhos
Milestone’s residential development in Paranhos has an exceptional location, in front of the Polo Universitário and Faculty of Dental Medicine, University of Porto, metro station.
“The residence will have 220 rooms, fully furnished with by exclusive designs by Milestone, along with mini-kitchens and private bathrooms. Common areas include study rooms, a self-service laundry, a gymnasium and a multipurpose room,” the executive explained.
The development will also have a commercial space for a cafeteria or a small restaurant. There will also be “two parking floors with capacity for 89 cars, 20 motorcycles and 13 bicycles.”
The 30-meter-high building, which has a total construction area of 9,165 m2 – will have nine above ground floors and one below – was licensed by the municipality in February.
More than 20,000 non-resident students
According to a study carried out by JLL, in partnership with Uniplaces, published in November 2017, “growth potential of around 4,000 beds exists in Porto, with a short-term pipeline of between 2,500 to 3,500 beds.”
Until now, investments by the British and Saudi MEFIC Capital and Round Hill Capital, o Rua do Amial – where 1,200 units are planned – by Temprano Capital Partners and by SPRU, currently the largest operator in Porto.
The supply so far has consisted of 290 rooms in private residences, 2,400 rooms in private apartments, 1,250 rooms in public university residences, plus 420 rooms in apartments managed by specialised operators in the sector. However, there are more than 56,000 students in Porto, of which 23,000 are non-resident, including 6,000 foreigners.
High-end features
What distinguishes Milestone from its rivals? “A Milestone residence combines the unique advantages of state-of-the-art accommodations, melded into a vibrant community of students,” Mr Machado stated.
In his opinion, the Paranhos’ student residence project for students is positioned at the higher end of the market. The executive declined, however, to provide details on the prices planned for the residences.
The company Gravity Prism, which changed its name to Studenthouse Rua Manuel Pereira S.A., requested the licensing for the unit in Paranhos. The Portuguese company Garcia Garcia is in charge of construction.
Milestone is present in Hungary, Portugal and lastly Austria, the firm’s country of origin, where it has several residential student projects.
Original Story: Idealista – Elisabete Soares
Translation: Richard Turner