Latest news with #Mezzino
Irish Independent
21-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Independent
Student blocks in Dublin and Galway hit the market with €115m price tag as investment rebounds
The Dublin property, trading as Mezzino at Mayor Square in the International Financial Services Centre, provides 290 bedspaces. It is located adjacent to the National College of Ireland and is a short walk to Trinity College Dublin. The Galway facility, known as Cúirt Na Coiribe, has 434 bedspaces and is located close to the University of Galway and Galway city centre. Built by local firm Kenny Developments in 2004, this premises extends to 160,422 sq ft and sits on a 1.414 hectare site. Kenny's sold it some years ago. Consequently it also comes with full planning permission for an additional 515 beds which would bring it to 920 net beds upon completion. While this planning permission will expire in about seven months, in January 2026, its existence demonstrates a positive planning history and the prospect that a revised submission could be favourably received by the planning authorities. Between the University of Galway and Atlantic Technological University campus in the city's eastern suburbs, about 22,700 full-time students attend third-level colleges in Galway. However, the city has only 5,300 purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) beds indicating strong excess demand. Emma Reardon of Cushman and Wakefield says that both Dublin and Galway PBSAs benefit from robust year-round demand, driven by consistent academic term time occupancy and strong summer business. PBSA is considered one of the more attractive sectors of the property investment market and last year US investor/developer Hines bought a 298-bed student facility at Stephen's Quarter, Dublin 2, for around €79m, helped by inclusion of a supermarket. The deals come as new figures from Sherry FitzGerald show that capital flows into the Irish property market totalled €28.7bn in 2024, up 13pc on the year before. It includes investment in student accommodation in 2024 of €230m. Commercial property capital flows expanding by 75pc year-on-year to €4.5bn. There was a notable improvement in direct commercial investment, up 39pc to €2bn, and development land transactions also grew significantly. The data shows the residential market continued to dominate activity, accounting for €24.2bn of the total. ADVERTISEMENT Total spend by non-household entities including institutional investors, local authorities and Approved Housing Bodies (ABH) was up 10pc, although it was still below the 2022 level. The Private Rented Sector (PRS) remains largely on the sidelines, accounting for just €246m of investment, the weakest seen since 2017, with no forward fund or forward commit PRS transactions reported in 2024. This confirms that PRS investment has largely been replaced by an increase in AHBs funding new supply of rental stock including apartments, rather than both segments growing alongside each other.
Irish Times
20-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
Dublin and Galway student accommodation portfolio hits the market at €115m
A number of international investors are expected to run the rule over a substantial student accommodation portfolio which has come to the market. Located in Dublin's IFSC and in Galway city, the Project Galaxy portfolio comprises 724 student bed spaces, is fully operational and guiding at a price of €115 million through agent Cushman & Wakefield. A total of 290 bed spaces are located at Mayor Square in Dublin's IFSC. The scheme, which operates under the Hubble brand and is managed by student-accommodation specialist, Mezzino, is located adjacent to the National College of Ireland (NCI) campus and is a short walk to Trinity College Dublin. The student accommodation at Mayor Square in Dublin's IFSC Hubble's Cúirt Na Coiribe scheme in Galway has 434 bed spaces and is located close to the University of Galway and Galway city centre. The two schemes comprise a mix of room types at rates ranging from €185 to €336 per week. Commenting on the sale, Cushman & Wakefield says: 'With favourable supply-demand dynamics in both cities and ongoing constraints for new development, this portfolio is well-positioned to deliver long-term value and resilience.' READ MORE Should a sale proceed at the €115 million guide, the purchaser would be in line for a net initial yield of 6.8 per cent. The guide price equates to an average of €159,000 per bed. The demand for student accommodation at third level remains robust in Dublin and across other European cities. Cushman & Wakefield recently released its 2025 European Living Investor Survey, which demonstrates that the living sector, underpinned by long-term demographic trends and an undersupply of quality assets, remains a strategic priority for investors over the next five years. The purpose-built student accommodation sector was identified as a particularly strong target allocation for these investors.
