Investment firm Blackstone makes $13 billion acquisition in student-housing sector

Blackstone Inc., a New York-based investment firm, has agreed to buy student-housing owner American Campus Communities Inc.
 
The deal values the company at about $12.8 billion, indicating the firm expects rents to continue to rise as more college students return to campus. Austin, Texas-based ACC is the largest publicly traded owner and developer of student housing in the U.S.
 
Blackstone plans to build new properties under ACC’s platform, signalling the firm’s optimism that demand will continue to grow. The ACC deal is Blackstone’s largest student housing investment to date. Last summer, it agreed to buy a majority stake in eight student-housing properties for $784 million.
 
ACC owns 166 buildings across the U.S., including properties near Arizona State University and the University of California, Berkeley. Roughly one-quarter of its properties are on campus.