A new joint venture has acquired a 12-property student housing portfolio across 10 states in what the seller says is the sector's largest deal of the year.
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The Scion Group and an Ares Real Estate fund purchased the 7,578-bed portfolio from Harrison Street Asset Management for $910M, both sides of the transaction announced in separate releases Wednesday.
The 12 properties serve a dozen campuses, including the University of Florida, Auburn University, the University of Notre Dame, Ohio State University, James Madison University and Arizona State, according to the releases.
It’s the first acquisition for the new Scion and Ares JV, which plans to invest in off-campus student housing in the U.S. They said they are focusing on high-quality assets in markets with strong enrollment and limited new supply.
"This sector continues to demonstrate resilient demand characteristics,” Scion CEO Robert Bronstein said in a release. Andrew Holm, Ares' head of U.S. diversified equity, said he believes the joint venture is “well positioned to unlock value across this portfolio.”
Harrison Street said it accumulated the portfolio over the past 10 years through five fund vehicles.
“The transaction represents one of the largest student housing portfolio dispositions in recent years and underscores the continued depth of institutional demand for student housing exposure,” said Christopher Merrill, Harrison Street co-founder and Global CEO.
He added that his firm will continue investing in “high-quality student housing properties near leading universities, while evaluating strategic portfolio sales that deliver compelling outcomes for our investors.”
The student housing sales market has ramped up over the past few years, after investment plummeted in 2023, according to Berkadia’s 2026 report on the sector. The dollar volume for student housing sales increased by 30% between 2024 and 2025, with $10.4B trading hands last year, up from $8B in 2024 and $5.7B in 2023.
But demand is becoming a bifurcated story in the student housing sector. More well-endowed, larger schools, particularly in the South and West, are experiencing strong enrollment growth, while smaller schools nationwide are struggling, Bisnow reported this week, leading some to shutter.
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