Merkel Capital Opens 565-Bed VIBE STAY Madrid Student Residence in Vallecas

Merkel Capital has opened VIBE STAY Madrid, a 565-bed purpose-built student accommodation residence in Madrid's Vallecas district, the company announced Sept. 2. The property sits approximately 300 meters from the Campus Sur of the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid and 250 meters from the Sierra de Guadalupe metro station on Line 1, offering residents access to Gran Vía and central Madrid in roughly 20 minutes.

Property Details and Amenities

VIBE STAY Madrid offers 565 beds alongside a range of communal spaces designed for student life. Amenities include a gym, dining room, study areas, coworking spaces, a games room, a cinema, a TikTok room, a cooking and social space known as a txoko, and a pool. Adjacent to the residence is one of Madrid's larger padel clubs.

The Vallecas location provides direct transit connectivity via Line 1, one of Madrid's primary metro lines, linking the campus-adjacent property to the broader city.

Merkel Capital's PBSA Expansion Strategy

The Madrid opening is part of a broader growth push by Merkel Capital in Spain's purpose-built student accommodation sector. The company has outlined plans to invest €400 million over four years through a dedicated investment vehicle backed by €250 million in capital, with a goal of roughly doubling its platform from approximately 3,200 beds to 6,700 beds. Target markets include Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Málaga, and Seville.

Merkel Capital has been active across multiple Spanish university cities. In Pamplona, the company previously acquired land at avenida Zaragoza with calle Sadar for a short- and medium-stay residential project encompassing approximately 5,000 square meters of buildable area. In Valencia, the firm acquired two plots in 2025 for a new PBSA project and has continued pursuing additional development there.

Spain's PBSA Market Context

The VIBE STAY Madrid opening comes as Spain's student housing investment market has accelerated sharply. Investment in Spanish purpose-built student accommodation reached approximately €660 million in the first half of 2026, roughly double the volume recorded in the same period a year earlier. Spain currently has an estimated 118,800 PBSA beds serving a student population in which approximately 650,000 students require accommodation, pointing to a structural supply gap.

In Madrid specifically, the net provision rate for purpose-built student beds stands at approximately 22%, with the city's shortfall estimated at more than 60,000 beds. Occupancy across major Spanish university cities frequently runs between 95% and 100%. Prime PBSA yields in Spain are around 4.40%, reflecting continued institutional demand for stabilized student housing assets.

Market Outlook

With the inauguration of VIBE STAY Madrid, Merkel Capital said it is reinforcing its position in the purpose-built student accommodation segment and advancing its strategy of growth in Spain's student housing market. The Vallecas residence represents the company's latest completed asset as it works toward its stated target of approximately 6,700 beds across its platform.