Singapore’s Centurion REIT Beats Property Income and Revenue Forecasts as Rents Rise

Singapore-listed Centurion Accommodation REIT posted net property income of S$36.1 million ($28.5 million) for its inaugural financial period, beating its IPO forecast by 4.1 percent on higher rents and strong occupancy across its worker and student housing properties.

CAREIT’s gross revenue came in at S$50.7 million, 3.4 percent above forecast, the trust’s manager said Monday in a release. The amount available for distribution to unitholders reached S$30 million, 6.7 percent ahead of forecast.

The reporting period ran from 12 August 2025 to the end of December. The REIT has focused on execution and growth since listing on the SGX in September, said Tony Bin, CEO of the manager, a wholly owned unit of purpose-built housing developer Centurion Corp.

“We are delighted to deliver a strong set of inaugural results that exceed our IPO projections,” Bin said. “This validates the resilience and quality of our purpose-built living sector portfolio.”

Occupancy Climbs

CAREIT’s portfolio comprises 15 of Centurion’s purpose-built projects in Singapore, Britain and Australia with a total value of S$2.2 billion ($1.7 billion).

Key assets include the 7,330-bed Westlite Toh Guan and 6,290-bed Westlite Mandai worker dorms in Singapore, the 982-bed Dwell Manchester Student Village and 362-bed Dwell Manchester Student Village South in England, and the 300-bed Dwell East End Adelaide in the South Australia capital.

In January, the trust completed its A$345 million acquisition of a second Australia student housing asset, the 732-bed Epiisod Macquarie Park in western Sydney. 

The manager said financial occupancy in the portfolio stood at 97.6 percent for worker accommodation and 99.1 percent for student accommodation, both 1.8 points higher than IPO forecasts.  

Also during the reporting period, new blocks at Westlite Toh Guan received temporary occupation permits, with additional permits granted at Westlite Mandai in January 2026. The REIT secured regulatory approvals to retain worker beds at the two Singapore sites through 2028 and 2030, with licensing applications ongoing.

Sponsor Eyes London, Mideast

Looking ahead, CAREIT plans to focus on asset enhancements and selective acquisitions, leveraging a strong balance sheet to pursue accretive investments.

“Supported by our sponsor’s ROFR pipeline and a structural demand for quality student and worker accommodation, we are well positioned to deliver sustainable, long-term value to our unitholders,” Bin said.

CAREIT units closed at S$1.13 on Tuesday, down 1.7 percent on the session but up 28 percent from their IPO price of S$0.88.

Having raised over $600 million in the CAREIT IPO, Centurion Corp continues to expand overseas. In October the group acquired a development site for a student housing project in central London for £41 million (then $54.8 million), marking the builder’s first property in the UK capital.

CEO Kong Chee Min told the Business Times this month that SGX-listed Centurion was preparing for its entry into the Middle East, citing the region’s heavy reliance on migrant labour and largely expatriate workforce.