• Orka Investments has acquired Hill View Place, a 226-bed purpose-built student accommodation scheme next to the University of Exeter’s Streatham Campus, through its joint venture with a global institutional real estate investor.
• The scheme is 100% occupied for the 2026/27 academic year and takes the joint venture’s portfolio to 1,512 beds across four cities, adding Exeter to Birmingham, Glasgow and Aberdeen.
• The acquisition takes Orka’s wider UK student housing platform, including assets held outside the joint venture, to 2,080 beds across six schemes.
• Investec Real Estate has provided the acquisition financing.

Orka Investments, the London-based real estate investment manager, has completed the acquisition of Hill View Place, a 226-bed purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) scheme in Exeter, through its joint venture with a global institutional real estate investor.

Hill View Place is adjacent to the University of Exeter’s Streatham Campus and a short bus ride from the city centre. Opened in 2022, the scheme offers a mix of en-suite rooms, studios, townhouses and penthouse apartments, alongside a gym, cinema lounge, games room, communal lounge and outdoor space. It is fully let for the 2026/27 academic year and boasts a strong historical occupancy.

The University of Exeter is a member of the Russell Group and, according to UCAS data for the 2025 admissions cycle, recorded a 15.5% rise in applicants, the largest increase of any Russell Group university. Demand for the most selective universities continues to strengthen nationally. UCAS data for the 2026 cycle show applicants to higher tariff institutions rose 6.9% by the January deadline, well ahead of growth at medium and lower tariff providers.

The acquisition was part funded with an acquisition loan from Investec Real Estate, with whom Orka has a long-standing relationship. The facility includes an accordion structure, which will support Orka’s growth ambitions.

Orka’s joint venture launched in December 2025 with three acquisitions totalling c.1,300 beds in Birmingham, Glasgow and Aberdeen, with over 80% of beds catering to Russell Group university locations. Hill View Place is the joint venture’s first acquisition since this launch, taking the JV portfolio to 1,512 beds and adding a third Russell Group city alongside Birmingham and Glasgow. Like the seed assets, it is an established, high-quality, income-producing scheme, and it complements the portfolio’s growth into strong university markets.

Including assets held outside the joint venture, Orka’s UK student housing platform now totals 2,080 beds across six schemes.

Orka invests in operational real estate, principally student accommodation and hotels. Across both asset classes, income comes from individuals who stay in a building rather than from a long lease to a single tenant, so rents reset regularly and returns depend on how well each building is run. In student accommodation, Orka buys existing, income-producing schemes in cities with structural demand, at a discount to what they would cost to build today, and drives performance through active asset management and dedicated scheme-level operations.

Raoul Malhotra, Founder and CEO of Orka Investments, said:

“The years when student housing could rely on rapid rent growth are behind us, and that changes where returns come from. Students now choose between purpose-built accommodation, shared houses, build to rent and living at home. PBSA cannot always win that competition on price alone, so we win it on product, service and flexibility, and a well-located building like Hill View Place gives us everything we need to do that.”

Philippe de Croÿ-Solre, Vice President, Investments at Orka Investments, said:

“Hill View Place is a high-quality, fully let scheme in a Russell Group city where applicant numbers are rising faster than anywhere else in the group. We are pleased to have completed it efficiently alongside our partners and advisers, and we have further acquisitions in the pipeline.”

Sebastian Walley, Investec Real Estate, said:

“The UK remains a global higher education leader, which has underpinned our over 15-year track record funding high-quality, well-located student schemes. We are particularly comfortable supporting sponsors that understand the trends driving customer demand and manage leasing arrangements, as this usually results in a more reliable income stream that performs well across a cycle.”

The joint venture was advised by Simmons & Simmons (legal) and Colliers (technical and environmental due diligence). Newmark acted for the vendor.

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