Herbert Smith Freehills has advised Scape Student Living Australia (Scape) on the acquisition of two Australian properties for the purposes of developing student accommodation.

The properties, located at 212-222 La Trobe Street in Melbourne’s Central Business District and 188 Vulture Street and 53 Tribune Streets, Brisbane will be developed into modern student accommodation with 1500 rooms in Melbourne and 7000 rooms in Brisbane aimed at both international and domestic students.

Launched in January this year, Scape is a joint venture between UK-based operator of student accommodation, Scape Student Living and APG Asset Management N.V. to develop, own and manage direct-let student accommodation facilities across Australia’s major tertiary education centres.

Scape’s Melbourne development, which consists of three towers, will have a staged delivery over 2018 and 2019 while the Brisbane development is expected to be completed in 2018.

The Herbert Smith Freehills team was led by partner David Sinn in Melbourne with assistance from partners Rob Bileckij and Jinny Chaimungkalanont in Sydney. Manual Makas, Director of Greenwoods & Herbert Smith Freehills advised on tax matters related to the transactions.

Herbert Smith Freehills has worked with Scape before, advising the company on its $30 million acquisition of a property located at 393 Swanston Street in Melbourne earlier this year. Development of the site is currently underway with completion expected in 2017.

David Sinn said: “We were delighted to work with Scape again to assist them with another strategic investment into the Australian commercial property sector. The deal demonstrates the strength of the Australian market and the increasing appetite of investors to invest capital in alternative asset classes such as student accommodation.”