Contracts have been exchanged for the forward sale of a 197-bed student accommodation development in Canterbury.
Watkin Jones, a listed developer and constructor with a focus on the student accommodation and build to rent sectors, announced the deal alongside other developments across its portfolio.
The business has exchanged contracts on a site at 57-64 Military Road with Europa Generation Student for the Canterbury scheme. Watkin Jones is receiving £19.6m, net of client funding costs.
The development has planning consent and is scheduled for completion ahead of the 2020/21 academic year. It will be Watkin Jones' first development in the city.
Elsewhere in the South East, Watkin Jones has recently secured a site in Brighton & Hove with planning permission for 186 residential units and about 21,500 sq ft of commercial space. The site is situated close to Hove railway station, as well as local retail and leisure amenities.
While the Brighton & Hove development benefits from an existing planning consent, Watkin Jones said it will re-work this consent so that the development is able to become part of the group's growing build to rent development pipeline. The scheme is targeted for delivery in FY 2022.
Watkin Jones chief executive Richard Simpson said: "Our expertise in acquiring sites at attractive prices, securing planning consent and then forward selling the schemes to a wide range of investors not only validates our business model but also demonstrates that, even in a more complex market, our strategy remains extremely resilient.
"The sectors in which we operate are highly attractive to investors and we continue to make solid progress against our internal targets."