Why Henny and Prime Edition are Moving into Student Living

It’s July in Melbourne. The Henny/Prime Edition HQ is taking part in Dry July, but Melbourne’s development scene seems to have been on the wagon for years. Projects have dried up, developers are abstaining from risk and some are still nursing hangovers from the apartment market binge of the 2000s and 2010s. So, as traditional apartment development continues to face headwinds in the Victorian market, the Melbourne developer-builder partnership is moving into purpose-built student accommodation and alternative living sectors. The partnership is leveraging combined expertise from high-end residential, retirement living and current PBSA projects to capitalise on Melbourne’s shifting accommodation demands. Prime Edition is preparing to announce a significant CBD student accommodation project in coming months, while construction arm Henny is at work on the Leicester Place PBSA development for Manors Gate Group. “We’ve been looking at PBSA for over 12 months now,” says Eric Loi, who co-founded Prime Edition in 2020 alongside Henny’s Ben Turner. “We’re looking at multiple sites in the CBD. We’ve optioned up a few sites, didn’t proceed on some, but we now have one that we’re likely to go ahead with.” Market fundamentals drive expansion The partnership’s student living focus is underpinned by strong sector fundamentals, with recent Reserve Bank of Australia analysis confirming that purpose-built student accommodation has grown rapidly in response to international student demand. ▲ A rendering of the Leicester Place student housing project at Carlton that will accommodate 190 residents across 14 levels. According to the Student Accommodation Council, private PBSA beds increased by 74 per cent since 2015 alongside 75 per cent growth in international student numbers. “A typical new PBSA building adds around 700 beds to the market, easing pressure on inner-city rentals,” the council says. While remaining tight-lipped on specific details, Loi reveals Prime Edition is planning a substantial student accommodation development in Melbourne’s northern CBD precinct. The project would comprise around 850 beds across just under 40 storeys, in “probably the best location for PBSA—in the northern pocket between the universities and the CBD”, Loi says. The development has attracted interest from major players in the PBSA sector, Loi says, with “recognised names you’d typically see in the space” considering partnerships on the project. International investment is also in the mix as offshore groups express interest in the development. Prime Edition hopes to sign contracts by mid-September, with construction potentially commencing mid-2026 for a two-year build program. ▲ Henny founder Ben Turner and Prime Edition managing director Eric Loi. While this will be the first foray into PBSA for Prime Edition, Loi believes their residential background gives them a competitive advantage in the sector. “What we’re good at is we understand residential, we understand the living sector,” he says. “We don’t shy away from building certain assets, but we do stick to adjacency.” The intended scale of the project means Henny is unlikely to construct it directly, but Turner says they will provide design expertise and construction management. “It wasn’t in our forecast pipeline, and it’s at a scale where it’s not within what we’d defined as our niche market,” Turner says. “What we’re offering is our skill set to help with the design team to get that project resolved.” Learning from Leicester Place Turner is no stranger to PBSA; he worked on 50 La Trobe Street during his time at Hickory in the Blue Sky era. That project, designed by Hayball, showed how specialised architects can create “well-resolved, set and forget” developments. Henny’s involvement in Leicester Place is not necessarily a testing ground for the partnership’s expanded living sector ambitions, but “it helps with proving numbers, and that’s a good opportunity for us,” Turner says. The 190-bed, 14-storey development at 4-12 Leicester Place at Carlton, designed by Plus Architecture for Manors Gate Group, spans 7636sq m of gross floor area on a compact 705sq m site. Plus Architecture’s design fuses old with new, incorporating weathered Corten steel alongside traditional terracotta elements and red brickwork. ▲ The Plus Architecture-designed Leicester Place design combines contemporary materials with Melbourne’s red brick vernacular. Turner, who co-founded Henny with wife Georgia in 2018, sees clear operational advantages in student accommodation. “What I find with those particular jobs is that they don’t have the emotion attachment like an apartment building,” he says. “Those architects know the products so well, it’s so well resolved. There’s a model and you deliver to it, rather than choose your own adventure.” Expanding the living sector portfolio Beyond PBSA, Prime Edition is exploring co-living developments with two sites under consideration, in the inner south and south east of Melbourne, each potentially accommodating 200 to 250 beds. “Co-living is very new to Melbourne but not so much in Sydney, so we suspect that will surge in Melbourne soon,” Loi says. “We try to be ahead of the game, just like PBSA.” The strategy extends to retirement living, where Henny has established credentials through developments for operators such as Benetas and Levande. “We love it because it’s a client that knows the end product, has a resolved design, knows what they want, and we can just punch it out,” Turner says. The partnership has also fielded approaches for hotel developments in the CBD. “We try not to jump too far out of our lane and what we’re good at,” Loi says. ▲ A rendering of the Como project at Toorak, designed by Jolson. High-end residential informs strategy The partnership’s high-end residential portfolio provides crucial understanding of what residents value. That includes Como, their $45-million development at 2 Bruce Street, Toorak, comprising 16 residences designed by Jolson with landscaping by Paul Bangay. Meanwhile, Avoca at 17 Avoca Street, South Yarra, comprises five full-floor apartments and a mansion home on a 1283sq m site at Domain Hill. The Tintern Toorak Village project with Hecker Guthrie comprises three ultra luxury apartments over four levels overlooking Toorak Village, with construction commencing August 2025 The $33-million Clifton Hill development at 33 Queens Parade includes apartments, townhouses and penthouses designed by Cera Stribley. Demolition and construction is expected to commence shortly, pending council planning endorsement. “What we found, especially with downsizer projects, is people want good layout, good amenity. They don’t necessarily want expensive stone or fixtures—they want good, useable space and storage,” Turner says. Market timing and partnership strategy The pivot comes as Melbourne’s residential development market faces significant challenges, with limited crane activity creating opportunities for strategic players. “Over the past two or three years since Covid, there hasn’t been much supply—everything’s just been finishing off construction,” Loi says. “But we feel it’s the right time to get things happening.” ▲ A rendering of The Clifton Hill project by Cera Stribley that combines apartments, townhouses and penthouses. Central to their expansion strategy is a partnership model extending beyond the internal relationship to include joint ventures with operators and investors. “Half the time, rather than competing, we say ‘what about a JV?’,” Turner says. The collaborative approach extends to providing feasibility support for other developers rather than traditional tender processes. Underpinning the expansion is their emphasis on documentation and design resolution, established through a centralised design office launched in 2023. With four architects and experienced design management, the team focuses on resolving projects before construction begins. As Melbourne’s accommodation landscape evolves, the Henny-Prime Edition partnership’s combination of construction expertise, development capability, and design focus positions them to capitalise on growing demand for alternative living solutions. “We come from the background where we want to build better,” Loi says. “Anyone can say they’re a developer, anyone can say they’re a builder, but we want to be the ones that actually deliver a quality product. “We want to be seen not just as a luxury developer, but as good developers who know what people need and can deliver. “We want to leave good marks around Melbourne city, whether it’s in the city or in the suburbs.”

Why Henny and Prime Edition are Moving into Student Living

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