Blacklight sells prime Liverpool PBSA

Harbert Management Corporation’s European property arm has acquired the 535-bed Limelight, bought from administrators in 2022, taken to completion in 2024, and put up for sale last year.

Savills had been instructed to seek offers of around £61m for the asset, which would reflect a net initial yield of 5.75%. No sale price has been disclosed.

Limelight’s new owner is Harbert European Real Estate (HERE), the European real estate investment platform of US asset manager Harbert Management Corporation.

Blacklight Capital Partners developed Limelight in conjunction with backer RoundShield, the European credit and tactical opportunities arm of global alternative asset manager Harrison Street.

Blacklight took the scheme through planning, design development and construction, with full operation commencing in 2024. Since opening, Limelight has achieved stabilised occupancy at 99% and income performance ahead of underwritten business plan assumptions.

The asset sits close to Liverpool’s principal universities and comprises 535 student beds arranged across a mix of studios and cluster apartments. Amenities include dedicated study space, social areas including sky lounge and kitchen, as well as a gym and cinema.

On-site management will remain in the hands of Homes for Students under its ‘Prestige’ banner.

Since HERE’s establishment in 2002, the platform has invested in more than 5,000 living sector units, including for-sale, multifamily/build-to-rent, and purpose-built student accommodation, across core European markets.

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James Humphrey, principal of UK & Northern Europe at Harbert Management Corporation, said: “This acquisition reflects our strategy of targeting high-quality, recently delivered assets at an attractive entry basis in structurally undersupplied markets. Our direct sourcing capabilities, sector expertise and strong local relationships were key to originating and executing this opportunity.”

Matthew Hunt, principal and founder at Blacklight, said: “This disposal crystallises true development value ahead of our underwritten business plan, and has demonstrated the capacity of the Blacklight:RoundShield partnership to deliver high-quality, institutional real estate with global appeal, a strategy that remains active and fully-funded.

“We have been impressed by HMC’s obvious capabilities, depth of capital and conviction in the sector, and see them as an ideal long-term owner to drive Limelight’s next phase of growth.  We wish them well as they grow their portfolio in Liverpool, a city we continue to back as a PBSA investment destination”.

Blacklight acquired the stalled site, formerly known as Natex, from administrators in 2022 following a detailed analysis of Liverpool’s student accommodation fundamentals, which showed and continues to show a structural undersupply of high-quality PBSA relative to demand.

One of three stalled Liverpool schemes to be taken on by the boutique investor-developer, the Limelight development sits off Norton Street. It was topped out by original developer Mount Property Group in 2021. Blacklight took full control of the 10- and 16-storey scheme in August 2022, refinancing it with Allied Irish Bank in 2024.

Tom Mees, head of development at Blacklight, said: “It goes without saying that a project of this scale cannot happen without a sustained team effort and we would like to take this opportunity to thank all parties that have been involved in both the development and operation of Limelight. Homes for Students, and in particular the on-site team at Limelight, deserve a special mention for their fantastic management of the building.”