The Top 10 Multifamily Deals of the Decade

American Campus Communities spent $1.4 billion to purchase the student housing portfolio of GMH Communities Trust in 2008. The deal was the second-largest multifamily deal of 2008, and spoke to the sector’s recession-resistant status. The move also marked a coming of age for the student housing industry, which saw its first sector-specific REITs emerge during the decade. The purchase of GMH significantly boosted American Campus’ market share. When the deal closed, the firm owned or managed 233 communities with 146,400 beds, eclipsing the portfolio size of fellow REIT Education Realty Trust, Inc., which owned or managed 41,329 beds across 69 properties at the time. The deal gave American Campus a presence in 39 new markets, as well as an opportunity to save on general and administrative costs and improve operational performance at the properties by boosting rents and occupancy rates. “For American Campus and our sector, the acquisition of underperforming assets is the greatest opportunity, and that’s what GMH Communities Trust represented,” said CEO Bill Bayless when the deal closed.