AUSTIN—Investment firm Safanad and Austin-based Aspen Heights, a developer and operator of off campus student housing across the United States, have entered into a strategic partnership to target “newly-developed purpose-built student housing properties at large universities.”

As part of this agreement, Safanad and Aspen Heights will recapitalize the ownership of a portfolio of student housing properties currently owned by Aspen Heights and its investment partners. The purchase price of this portfolio is over $400 million and includes eight properties with over 6,600 beds.

"This significant investment in eight of our student housing properties by Safanad will enable us to pursue more new student housing development opportunities across the country,” Aspen Heights founder and CEO Greg Henry told GlobeSt.com. “We continue to see a lot of opportunities in this market sector, and we view this investment as a big vote of confidence in our company by a global investor seeking to gain a major foothold in U.S. student housing.”

The strategic partnership will target both ground-up development and stabilized newly developed student housing properties.

“The student housing segment offers attractive risk-adjusted returns and represents a fragmented market with significant opportunity to scale businesses,” Ziad Dannaoui, head of Safanad's transaction team and member of its real estate board said. “We have developed an in-depth understanding of the key drivers underpinning student housing and this in turn informs our commitment to this sector.”

Said Henry: “We anticipate the cultural alignment between the two firms and our shared vision in the student housing sector to be key to our partnership's growth and success.”