Student Accommodation building costs in SA

1. IFC/ACUHO – I SAC
Student Accommodation Building
Costs
March 2023

2. INTRO
RLB is an independent global construction and property consultancy firm
providing management and advice throughout the built environment.
RLB in South Africa, previously known as Pentad has a national staff
count of over 150 full-time employees. Our offices are situated in five
cities across South Africa: Pretoria, Johannesburg, Cape Town, Durban
and Stellenbosch. We are a proud Level 1 B-BBEE contributor.
RLB Africa extends across the rest of the Sub-Saharan countries in Africa
and our offices are currently situated in Botswana, Democratic Republic
of Congo, Kenya and with African Alliance partners in Angola, Namibia
and Nigeria.

3. Commercial-in-confidence Presentation name
COST MANAGEMENT AND
QUANTITY SURVEYING
Cost management is at the core of RLB’s services.
The service encompasses cost estimating, cost management, the
production of tender and contract documents, the financial
administration of building contracts and dispute resolution.
SERVICES

4. Commercial-in-confidence Presentation name
OTHER SERVICES
• Engineering cost management
• Project management
• Property development advisors
• Construction economic analysis
• Design and construction evaluation
• Value engineering
• Insurance valuations
• Turnkey tenant fit-outs, including softs and furnishings
SERVICES

5. THE COST OF BUILDING STUDENT
ACCOMMODATION IN SOUTH AFRICA.

6. Commercial-in-confidence
→Understand the cost of building student
accommodation
→Identify costs. ...
→Identify benefits. ...
→Assign a monetary value to the costs and benefits. ...
→Create a timeline for expected costs and revenue.

7. Commercial-in-confidence
→Minimum norms and standards
for student housing (DHET)
→The efficiency of the minimum
design standards
→Social spaces
→FAR
→Parking ratios
→Design style
Presentation name
DETERMINING FACTORS TO LOOK AT

8. Commercial-in-confidence
We have selected 10 actual developments which will be sampled for the
purpose of highlighting the following key areas of focus:
→Development cost per bed for studio/ apartment style developments.
→Development cost per bed for dormitory style developments.
→Development cost per bed comparison between apartment, pod,
dormitory and refurbishment of studio designs.
→Average development cost per bed in various regions within South
Africa.
→Indicative operational cost based on various design (based on QS
Viabilities).
THE COST OF BUILDING STUDENT ACCOMMODATION
IN SOUTH AFRICA.

9. Commercial-in-confidence
Sampled projects per region as follows:
→Two (2) projects in Pretoria – new build
→One (1) project in Pretoria – refurbishment of existing
→Two (2) projects in Johannesburg – new build
→Two (2) projects in Cape Town – new build
→Two (2) projects in Pietermaritzburg – new build
→One (1) project in Eastern Cape – new build
THE COST OF BUILDING STUDENT ACCOMMODATION
IN SOUTH AFRICA.

10. Commercial-in-confidence Presentation name
A. BUILDING COSTS ON STUDIO/ APARTMENT STYLE
SAMPLE NAME + LOCATION
Student Apartments,
PTA - 432 Beds
Student Apartments,
CT - 706 Beds
Student Apartments,
PTA - 812 Beds
AVERAGE RATE PER BED
DESCRIPTIONS
ESTIMATED IMPROVEMENT COST (Excl VAT) R 101 183 000 R 354 465 000 R 214 442 000 R 223 363 333
ESTIMATED IMPROVEMENT COST (Incl. VAT) R 116 360 000 R 402 326 000 R 243 417 000 R 254 034 333
NO. OF BEDS 432 Beds 706 Beds 812 Beds 650 Beds
AREA PER STUDENT 18 m² 22 m² 19 m² 20 m²
GROSS BUILDING AREA (GBA) 7 866 m² 15 877 m² 15 543 m² 13 095 m²
CONSTRUCTION COST / M² OF GBA (EXCL VAT) R10 926 /m² R13 596 /m² R9 156 /m² R11 226 /m²
DEVELOPMENT COST / M² OF GBA (EXCL VAT) R12 864 /m² R22 326 /m² R13 797 /m² R16 329 /m²
CONSTRUCTION COST PER BED (Incl. VAT) R220 071 /Bed R333 859 /Bed R197 508 /Bed R250 479 /Bed
DEVELOPMENT COST PER BED (Incl. VAT) R269 353 /Bed R577 386 /Bed R303 705 /Bed R383 481 /Bed
R116360 000
R402326 000
R243417 000 R254034 333
R-
R50000 000
R100000 000
R150000 000
R200000 000
R250000 000
R300000 000
R350000 000
R400000 000
R450000 000
ESTIMATED IMPROVEMENT COST (Incl. VAT)
Student Apartments, PTA - 432 Beds Student Apartments, CT - 706 Beds
Student Apartments, PTA - 812 Beds AVERAGE RATE PER BED
R269 353 /Bed
R577 386 /Bed
R303 705 /Bed
R383 481 /Bed
Student Apartments, PTA - 432 Beds
Student Apartments, CT - 706 Beds
Student Apartments, PTA - 812 Beds
AVERAGE RATE PER BED
DEVELOPMENT COST PER BED (Incl. VAT)

11. Commercial-in-confidence Presentation name
B. BUILDING COSTS ON DORMITORY STYLE
SAMPLE NAME + LOCATION
Student
Apartments,
PTA - 812 Beds
Student Acc. Dev. -
Dormitory Style,
PMB - 1420 Beds
Student Acc. Dev. -
Dormitory Style,
CT - 860 Beds
AVERAGE RATE
PER BED
DESCRIPTIONS
ESTIMATED IMPROVEMENT COST (Excl VAT) R 214 442 000 R 354 429 000 R 287 146 000 R 285 339 000
ESTIMATED IMPROVEMENT COST (Incl. VAT) R 243 417 000 R 403 423 000 R 330 218 000 R 325 686 000
NO. OF BEDS 812 Beds 1 420 Beds 860 Beds 1 031 Beds
GROSS BUILDING AREA (GBA) 15 543 m² 23 628 m² 14 057 m² 17 743 m²
CONSTRUCTION COST / M² OF GBA (EXCL VAT) R9 156 /m² R10 344 /m² R13 314 /m² R10 938 /m²
DEVELOPMENT COST / M² OF GBA (EXCL VAT) R13 797 /m² R15 000 /m² R20 427 /m² R16 408 /m²
CONSTRUCTION COST PER BED (Incl. VAT) R197 508 /Bed R187 897 /Bed R242 697 /Bed R209 367 /Bed
DEVELOPMENT COST PER BED (Incl. VAT) R303 705 /Bed R287 038 /Bed R383 975 /Bed R324 906 /Bed
R303 705 /Bed
R287 038 /Bed
R383 975 /Bed
R324 906 /Bed
DEVELOPMENT COST PER BED (Incl. VAT)
0 Beds
200 Beds
400 Beds
600 Beds
800 Beds
1 000 Beds
1 200 Beds
1 400 Beds
1 600 Beds
R-
R50000 000
R100000 000
R150000 000
R200000 000
R250000 000
R300000 000
R350000 000
R400000 000
R450000 000
ESTIMATED IMPROVEMENT COST (Incl. VAT) NO. OF BEDS

12. Commercial-in-confidence Presentation name
C. AVERAGE BUILDING COST/BED STUDIO STYLE VS
DORMITORY STYLE
SAMPLE NAME + LOCATION
Student
Apartments,
PTA - 432 Beds
Student Acc. Dev. -
Pod Style,
JHB - 475 Beds
Student Acc. Dev. -
Dormitory Style,
PMB - 1420 Beds
Refurbish Student
Acc. Dev. Studio [in
Campus],
PTA - 301 Beds
AVERAGE RATE PER
BED
DESCRIPTIONS
NO. OF BEDS 432 Beds 475 Beds 1 420 Beds 301 Beds 657 Beds
GROSS BUILDING AREA (GBA) 7 866 m² 7 915 m² 23 628 m² 7 689 m² 11 774 m²
CONSTRUCTION COST / M² OF GBA (EXCL VAT) R10 926 /m² R12 795 /m² R10 344 /m² R10 397 /m² R11 116 /m²
DEVELOPMENT COST / M² OF GBA (EXCL VAT) R12 864 /m² R18 733 /m² R15 000 /m² R12 684 /m² R14 820 /m²
ESTIMATED IMPROVEMENT COST (Excl VAT) R101 183 000 R148 269 000 R354 429 000 R97 529 000 R175 352 500
ESTIMATED IMPROVEMENT COST (Incl. VAT) R116 360 000 R170 509 000 R403 423 000 R112 158 000 R200 612 500
CONSTRUCTION COST PER BED (Incl. VAT) R220 071 /Bed R235 967 /Bed R187 897 /Bed R299 439 /Bed R235 844 /Bed
DEVELOPMENT COST PER BED (Incl. VAT) R269 353 /Bed R358 967 /Bed R287 038 /Bed R372 620 /Bed R321 995 /Bed
0 m² 50 000 m² 100 000 m² 150 000 m² 200 000 m² 250 000 m² 300 000 m² 350 000 m² 400 000 m² 450 000 m²
Student Apartments, PTA - 432 Beds
Student Acc. Dev. - Pod Style, JHB - 475 Beds
Student Acc. Dev. - Dormitory Style, PMB - 1420 Beds
Refurbish Student Acc. Dev. Studio [in Campus], PTA - 301 Beds
AVERAGE RATE PER BED
GROSS BUILDING AREA (GBA) DEVELOPMENT COST / M² OF GBA (EXCL VAT) DEVELOPMENT COST PER BED (Incl. VAT)

13. Commercial-in-confidence Presentation name
D. AVERAGE BUILDING COST/BED PER REGION
DESCRIPTIONS PRETORIA JOHANNESBURG EASTERN CAPE WESTERN CAPE KWAZULU NATAL
AVERAGE RATE
PER BED
AVERAGE No. OF BEDS 515 Beds 538 Beds 718 Beds 783 Beds 967 Beds 704 Beds
AVERAGE GROSS BUILDING AREA 10 366 m² 9 122 m² 13 110 m² 14 967 m² 15 624 m² 12 638 m²
AVG. DEVELOPMENT COST PER M² OF GBA (EXCL VAT) R13 115 /m² R16 975 /m² R17 353 /m² R21 377 /m² R18 270 /m² R17 418 /m²
AVG. ESTIMATED IMPROVEMENT COST (EXCL. VAT) R137 718 000 R152 708 500 R227 498 000 R320 805 500 R259 266 000 R219 599 200
AVG. ESTIMATED IMPROVEMENT COST (INCL. VAT) R157 311 667 R175 614 500 R261 623 000 R366 272 000 R403 423 000 R272 848 833
AVG. LAND COST PER BED (EXC VAT) R25 516 /Bed R25 290 /Bed R21 100 /Bed R66 575 /Bed R20 854 /Bed R31 867 /Bed
AVG. CONSTRUCTION COST PER BED (INC. VAT) R239 006 /Bed R219 179 /Bed R261 408 /Bed R288 278 /Bed R216 294 /Bed R244 833 /Bed
AVG. DEVELOPMENT COST PER BED (INC. VAT) R315 226 /Bed R330 084 /Bed R364 378 /Bed R480 681 /Bed R327 098 /Bed R363 493 /Bed
R 0 /Bed R100 000 /Bed R200 000 /Bed R300 000 /Bed R400 000 /Bed R500 000 /Bed R600 000 /Bed
PRETORIA
JOHANNESBURG
EASTERN CAPE
WESTERN CAPE
KWAZULU NATAL
AVERAGE RATE PER BED
AVG. LAND COST PER BED (EXC VAT) AVG. DEVELOPMENT COST PER BED (INC. VAT)

14. Commercial-in-confidence Presentation name
E. INDICATIVE OPERATIONAL COST BASED ON VARIOUS DESIGNS
DESCRIPTIONS
Student
Apartments, PTA -
432 Beds
Student
Apartments, CT -
706 Beds
Student
Apartments, PTA -
812 Beds
Student Acc. Dev. -
Dormitory Style,
PMB - 1420 Beds
Student Acc. Dev. -
Pod Style, EC - 718
Beds
AVERAGE RATE
PER BED
NO. OF BEDS 432 Beds 706 Beds 812 Beds 1 420 Beds 718 Beds 818 Beds
GROSS BUILDING AREA (GBA) 7 866 m² 15 877 m² 15 543 m² 23 628 m² 13 110 m² 15 205 m²
DEVELOPMENT COST / M² OF GBA (EXCL VAT) R12 864 /m² R22 326 /m² R13 797 /m² R15 000 /m² R17 353 /m² R16 268 /m²
ESTIMATED IMPROVEMENT COST (Incl. VAT) R116 360 000 R402 326 000 R243 417 000 R403 423 000 R261 623 000 R285 429 800
DEVELOPMENT COST PER BED (Incl. VAT) R269 353 /Bed R577 386 /Bed R303 705 /Bed R287 038 /Bed R364 378 /Bed R360 372 /Bed
AVERAGE INCOME PER BED R4 697 /Bed R8 310 /Bed R4 697 /Bed R4 579 /Bed R4 765 /Bed R5 409 /Bed
FORECASTED OPERATIONAL COSTS (Adjusted) 44,85% 43,01% 47,39% 48,92% 45,00% 45,83%
INDICATIVE YIELD 9,62% 8,20% 8,14% 8,15% 7,19% 8,26%
0.00%
10.00%
20.00%
30.00%
40.00%
50.00%
60.00%
Student
Apartments, PTA
- 432 Beds
Student
Apartments, CT -
706 Beds
Student
Apartments, PTA
- 812 Beds
Student Acc. Dev.
- Dormitory Style,
PMB - 1420 Beds
Student Acc. Dev.
- Pod Style, EC -
718 Beds
AVERAGE RATE
PER BED
FORECASTED OPERATIONAL COSTS (Adjusted) INDICATIVE YIELD

15. Commercial-in-confidence Presentation name
F. INDICATIVE OPERATIONAL COST (OPS ADJUSTED TO DEVELOPERS
FINANCIAL MODULE)
DESCRIPTIONS
Student
Apartments, PTA -
432 Beds
Student
Apartments, CT -
706 Beds
Student
Apartments, PTA -
812 Beds
Student Acc. Dev. -
Dormitory Style,
PMB - 1420 Beds
Student Acc. Dev. -
Pod Style, EC - 718
Beds
AVERAGE RATE PER
BED
NO. OF BEDS 432 Beds 706 Beds 812 Beds 1 420 Beds 718 Beds 818 Beds
GROSS BUILDING AREA (GBA) 7 866 m² 15 877 m² 15 543 m² 23 628 m² 13 110 m² 15 205 m²
DEVELOPMENT COST / M² OF GBA (EXCL VAT) R12 864 /m² R22 326 /m² R13 797 /m² R15 000 /m² R17 353 /m² R16 268 /m²
ESTIMATED IMPROVEMENT COST (Incl. VAT) R116 360 000 R402 326 000 R243 417 000 R403 423 000 R261 623 000 R285 429 800
DEVELOPMENT COST PER BED (Incl. VAT) R269 353 /Bed R577 386 /Bed R303 705 /Bed R287 038 /Bed R364 378 /Bed R360 372 /Bed
AVERAGE INCOME PER BED R4 500 /Bed R8 310 /Bed R4 500 /Bed R4 500 /Bed R4 500 /Bed R5 262 /Bed
FORECASTED OPERATIONAL COSTS (Adjusted) 44,85% 43,01% 47,39% 48,92% 45,00% 45,83%
INDICATIVE YIELD 9,21% 8,20% 7,80% 8,01% 6,79% 8,00%
0.00%
10.00%
20.00%
30.00%
40.00%
50.00%
60.00%
Student
Apartments, PTA
- 432 Beds
Student
Apartments, CT -
706 Beds
Student
Apartments, PTA
- 812 Beds
Student Acc.
Dev. - Dormitory
Style, PMB -
1420 Beds
Student Acc.
Dev. - Pod Style,
EC - 718 Beds
AVERAGE RATE
PER BED
FORECASTED OPERATIONAL COSTS (Adjusted) INDICATIVE YIELD

16. Commercial-in-confidence Presentation name
G. INDICATIVE OPERATIONAL COST (OPS ADJUSTED TO DEVELOPERS
FINANCIAL MODULE AND LISTED)
DESCRIPTIONS
Student Apartments,
PTA - 432 Beds
Student Apartments,
CT - 706 Beds
Student Apartments,
PTA - 812 Beds
Student Acc. Dev. -
Dormitory Style, PMB -
1420 Beds
Student Acc. Dev. - Pod
Style, EC - 718 Beds
AVERAGE RATE PER
BED
NO. OF BEDS 432 Beds 706 Beds 812 Beds 1 420 Beds 718 Beds 818 Beds
GROSS BUILDING AREA (GBA) 7 866 m² 15 877 m² 15 543 m² 23 628 m² 13 110 m² 15 205 m²
DEVELOPMENT COST / M² OF GBA (EXCL VAT) R12 864 /m² R22 326 /m² R13 797 /m² R15 000 /m² R17 353 /m² R16 268 /m²
ESTIMATED IMPROVEMENT COST (Incl. VAT) R116 360 000 R402 326 000 R243 417 000 R403 423 000 R261 623 000 R285 429 800
DEVELOPMENT COST PER BED (Incl. VAT) R269 353 /Bed R577 386 /Bed R303 705 /Bed R287 038 /Bed R364 378 /Bed R360 372 /Bed
AVERAGE INCOME PER BED R4 500 /Bed R8 310 /Bed R4 500 /Bed R4 500 /Bed R4 500 /Bed R5 262 /Bed
INDICATIVE OPERATIONAL COSTS (Listed Current) 54,81% 52,56% 57,92% 59,79% 55,00% 56,02%
INDICATIVE YIELD 7,55% 6,83% 6,23% 6,30% 5,56% 6,49%
INDICATIVE OPERATIONAL COSTS (Listed Current)
Expenses Operating costs Property Staff Costs Accounting and administrative costs
Municipal costs Gardening services - contract
Salaries - Maintenance
Staff Insurance
Rates expense Gardening services - consumables Admin fee (NSFAS Sbux)
Electricity - Students Cleaning services - contracts Marketing and res-life
Electricity - non-students Cleaning services - consumables Accounting fees
Water - Students Security Property Management fee
Water - non-students Repairs & Maintenance Input VAT claim
Sewerage - expense IT access costs
Refuse - expense DSTV & Wifi Asset Management Fee

17. END
Questions?