Student accommodation provider Atira has snapped up a residential site that’s co-owned by construction company Built and Aussie Home Loans’ boss James Symond for just under $24 million, sources say.
The Sydney site at 4-18 Doncaster Avenue, near the Royal Randwick Racecourse, lies conveniently in the path of the Sydney’s future light rail and was previously approved as a residential development for about 50 dwellings over three buildings.
The two heritage terraces at 10 and 12 Doncaster Avenue were meant to be retained and refurbished.
After an unsolicited offer by Atira, Built and Mr Symond, who had planned on developing the project in a joint venture, sold the site to the group which will now convert it into a student accommodation to service the nearby University of New South Wales (UNSW).
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Atira now joins other student accommodation providers already in operation in the area including UNSW’s UNSW Village and New College Village as well as Unilodge on Anzac Parade.
Atira’s owner, Blue Sky Alternative Investments, came under the spotlight this year, after it overstated its assets and overcharged its investors.
The group currently manages 1000 beds, with a further 4600 beds being built across Brisbane, Melbourne, and Adelaide and started out as The PAD in 2016.
Built and Mr Symond had accumulated the sites at 4-18 Doncaster Avenue between 2013 and 2015 when government plans to extend the light rail to that part of the CBD were underway.
They first bought the 1647sq m three-lot site at 4-8 Doncaster Avenue and the terraces at 10 and 12 Doncaster Avenue for $6 million from Randwick Racecourse operator, Australian Turf Club in 2013.
The pair then extended their site by buying three houses individually at 14-18 Doncaster Avenue for $4.8 million in 2015.
Built will recycle its portion of the sale into other projects in its development pipeline. Led by Marco Rossi, the group’s is also involved in development and fitouts.
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