Education Realty Trust (EDR) recently announced that it has entered into a joint venture (JV) with Concord Eastridge to develop, own and manage a mixed-use collegiate housing community worth $52 million in Phoenix, Arizona. This community is located in close proximity to the Phoenix Biomedical Campus, which includes the University Of Arizona School Of Medicine, and three blocks of the Arizona State University downtown campus in Phoenix.
This community will jointly be owned by both the companies with Education Realty being the majority owner. Both the companies plan to commence construction by summer 2013.
The 609-bed housing community has an urban design and provides excellent amenities to its residents, including a large fitness center, a swimming pool, retail space and a parking garage for over 400 vehicles. The housing community also comprises 326 units with studios, as well as one, two, three and four-bedroom apartments.
Education Realty has entered downtown Phoenix at an opportune moment as both the University of Arizona and the Arizona State University are investing in the development and expansion of the downtown campus.The City of Phoenix is also supporting the universities and the medical industry with the Arizona Cancer Center expected to begin construction shortly and it is also planning for a medical office building.
These developments place Education Realty in an excellent position to benefit from the continuing high growth in student population.With the continuous investment in the collegiate housing industry, Education Realty expects to create long-term value for its shareholder.
Education Realty is one of America’s largest owners, developers and managers of collegiate housing. A self-administered and self-managed real estate investment trust, EDR owns or manages 60 communities in 23 states with more than 34,000 beds within more than 11,000 units.
Education Realty currently retains a Zacks #3 Rank, which translates into a short-term Hold rating. We are also maintaining our long-term Neutral recommendation on the stock. One of its competitors, American Campus Communities Inc (ACC) holds a Zacks #2 Rank, which implies a short-term Buy rating
To read this article on Zacks.com click here.
Zacks Investment Research
