\u201cBloemfontein has a well-publicised student housing crisis and with six tertiary education institutions surrounding these buildings, they are crying out for conversion to student accommodation,” said Dart.<\/p>\n The largest of the nearby campuses is the Central University of Technology, which has a student body of more than 21,000 and only houses approximately 5,000 in accredited on- and off-campus accommodation.<\/p>\n \u201cBesides the smaller colleges like Rosebank, Boston, Damelin and numerous FET institutions, just down the road there are two University of the Free State campuses which have a student body of more than 33,000 and a hopeless shortage of accommodation.<\/p>\n \u201cBloemfontein isn\u2019t the only city with these reconversion opportunities given a recent World Bank Group International Finance Corporation report that noted South Africa\u2019s student housing supply-demand gap already exceeds 500,000,” he said.<\/p>\n This trend is also international, with DigsConnect saying last month that global investment into purpose-built student accommodation exceeded $16 billion in 2018, and \u201cdespite the pandemic, this asset class is resilient and still growing rapidly as student enrolment increases each year\u201d.<\/p>\n Dart said mixed-used urban commercial redevelopment is another on-point international trend that\u2019s been proving extremely profitable for real estate investors \u2013 particularly in Cape Town.<\/p>\n \u201cAs with student redevelopment, location is key, which is why we\u2019ve had so much interest in the Salt River city block that\u2019s going under the hammer on August 11th. The large triangular lot bordered by Hopkins, Yew and Aubrey streets in the vicinity of the Salt River Circle, is in the heart of a vibrant rejuvenation zone and just minutes from the CBD.<\/p>\n \u201cThe property is currently occupied by low-rise light industrial premises, but with mixed use zoning and a demolition permit already granted, has plans for a state-of-the-art live-work-play designer building,” said Dart.<\/p>\n The proposed development comprises four basement parking levels and a ground floor with large retail, restaurants, workshops, micro retail, a co-working space and a community learning centre, which will be topped by 276 apartments spread over seven floors.<\/p>\n \u201cA very savvy investor is going to walk away from the auction with a dream project, because so much of the preliminary, time-consuming hard work on this development has already been done.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Hoffman-Square-in-Bloemfontein-ideal-for-conversion-to-student-accommodation-scaled-e1659012687248.jpg\")
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