• GSA and Nuveen become a significant player in the French student accommodation market.
• The 3,700-bed portfolio has an 80% weighting to Paris, complemented by assets in four other leading regional cities.
• The transaction underscores GSA’s growth strategy and commitment to expanding across key European markets.
• Yugo, Europe’s largest student housing operator, will deliver operational excellence, long-term value and set a new benchmark for the student experience in France.

Global Student Accommodation (GSA), the global leader in student housing, and Nuveen Real Estate, one of the largest real estate investment managers in the world, on behalf of its parent company TIAA, are pleased to announce the successful completion of the acquisition of the YouFirst Campus portfolio from Gecina, for approximately €540 million.

The portfolio comprises over 3,700 beds, with an 80% weighting to Paris, one of the most popular study destinations for students in Europe. Other assets are located in close proximity to leading universities in Bordeaux, Lille, Lyon, and Marseille.

The Parisian market provides access to the second largest student population in Europe and an immediate scalable presence in France. The transaction reinforces GSA’s position as a global leader in real estate asset management within the student housing sector and is a strategic building block for further expansion across Europe’s leading higher education cities.

France presents an exceptional opportunity to deliver much needed professionally managed accommodation to over 2.8 million students, in a market with an average provision rate of just 8%. The joint venture (JV) will capitalise on these compelling sector fundamentals and deploy GSA’s exceptional track record of entering new markets and expertise in asset and investment management, to realise accretive capital value opportunities.

James Hunt, Global Head of Real Estate at Global Student Accommodation, said:

"Completing the acquisition of the YouFirst Campus portfolio and entering a new market for GSA is a step forward in achieving our broader strategic growth plans across the leading educational cities in Europe. We are excited to make our mark in France and committed to expanding further into France’s top student cities, as well as those in Italy, Germany, Ireland, Spain, Portugal, and the UK.”

Jasper Gilbey, Head of Housing and Alternatives at Nuveen Real Estate, said:

“This acquisition marks a significant milestone for Nuveen as we look to grow our purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) portfolio across Continental Europe. The French PBSA market, notably in Paris, has been a primary focus for us over the last 12 months given the favourable supply/demand fundamentals, so we are delighted to access the market at scale – and intend to further increase our exposure to the French market in the coming months”.

Yugo, the global student housing brand and largest student housing operator in Europe, has been appointed to manage the portfolio - marking its debut in the French market and accelerating its growth trajectory. With its experienced leadership team, Yugo will deliver an enhanced offering to students, while unlocking operational efficiencies for the joint venture and adding long-term value.

As part of the transaction, YouFirst Campus’ 30 employees have joined Yugo, ensuring a smooth transition for students and enabling Yugo to retain the knowledge and experience of the team.

Joe Persechino, Global Chief Operating Officer at Yugo, commented:

“I am delighted to welcome the YouFirst Campus team to Yugo today. Working together we will preserve valuable local knowledge while leveraging Yugo’s global expertise to supercharge Yugo’s offering.

This transaction presents a strategic opportunity for Yugo to elevate the student living experience in France and achieve continued growth for our partners. With our operations spanning 14 countries and over 100,000 customers, we are committed to utilising our strong operational track record and relationships with universities to deliver further efficiencies for the portfolio.”

TD Securities and Barclays acted as financial advisors to GSA, with Morgan Stanley & Co International plc. acting for Gecina.

Find out more about our entry into France in the short video here.