Centurion Accommodation Reit’s Q1 NPI of S$37.5 million exceeds expectations

[SINGAPORE] The manager of on Tuesday (May 5) posted net property income of S$37.5 million for the first quarter ended Mar 31.

This is up 2.4 per cent from its prospectus forecast of S$36.6 million, according to the bourse filing.

Revenue stood at S$52.5 million for the period, 2.7 per cent higher than the projected S$51.1 million.

The better-than-expected results came on the back of higher occupancy and rental rates, as well as stronger currencies such as the British pound and the Australian dollar against the Singapore dollar, partially offset by higher property operating expenses.

The business update noted that purpose-built worker accommodation (PBWA) in Singapore registered an occupancy of 94 per cent. It exceeded the expectation of 93.1 per cent.

“This outperformance was driven by higher occupancy, supported by stronger leasing across existing assets and encouraging demand for the newly added bed capacity in Westlite Toh Guan and Westlite Mandai,” it said.

Meanwhile, purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) assets in the United Kingdom and Australia registered occupancy levels of 99 per cent and 97.5 per cent, respectively.

Looking ahead, the Reit’s accommodation portfolio remains anchored by favourable structural fundamentals across its core markets, said its manager.

Tony Bin, CEO of the manager, said: “We are encouraged by the quarter’s steady performance, driven by strong occupancy across our portfolio, with results exceeding our initial public offering projections for the second consecutive reporting period.”

The statement added that strong foreign labour demand and limited supply continue to support the PBWA portfolio in Singapore, while robust higher education demand in the United Kingdom and Australia underpins growth in the PBSA portfolio.