Newmark Knight Frank Multifamily (NKF) facilitated the sale of The Automatic Lofts, a 482-bed student housing core asset. Located within walking distance of the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC), the asset traded to OC Ventures, an Asia-based student housing private equity fund, for an undisclosed price.
Ryan Lang, vice chairman and head of NKF’s student housing group, along with Brandon Buell, managing director, and Jack Brett, associate director, represented the seller, Empire Square Group, a New York-based private real estate investment management firm. According to Lang, “This transaction represents the growing trend of foreign capital investors acquiring U.S. student housing assets, indicating the strength and demand of the market.”
Located in Chicago within steps of the UIC campus, this historic asset combines boutique appeal with luxury amenities. The Automatic Lofts sits within the trendy West Loop neighborhood, surrounded by retail, dining and entertainment, as well as Fortune-500 corporate offices like Google, McDonald’s, Motorola and Boeing. Additionally, Chicago is home to the third largest student population in the country with over 80,000 students enrolled at higher education institutions throughout the metro.
“The Automatic Lofts was one of our more competitive offerings with its positioning in one of the most desirable neighborhoods in the nation’s third-largest metro,” said Lang. “Its location, combined with the dense student population, created a unique story that appealed to a wide range of investors.”
