Bill Bayless, president and CEO of American Campus Communities (NYSE: ACC), joined REIT.com for a CEO Spotlight video interview at REITWeek 2016: NAREIT’s Investor Forum at the Waldorf Astoria New York.
American Campus Communities develops, owns and manages student housing communities at 96 campuses throughout the United States.
Bayless commented on the company’s moves to fortify its balance sheet through asset sales and an equity raise. The company plans to reinvest the money into its “highly accretive” $1.2 billion development pipeline, he added.
Bayless also addressed the topic of the substantial amounts of domestic and foreign capital entering the student housing segment.
“It’s actually been a really positive thing and the final step in the maturation of the student housing sector as an institutional asset class,” Bayless said.
The inflow of capital has helped compress cap rates to a point where student housing is now trading more on par with the multifamily sector, according to Bayless.
“As the 800 pound gorilla in the space, it will provide great mergers and acquisitions opportunities three to five years down the road, as those folks look to capitalize on the investments they’ve made,” he added.