Student accommodation company Unite Group on Tuesday reported the estimated net asset value of its UNITE UK Student Accommodation Fund rose to £0.857 (EUR 1) per unit at the end of last year, reflecting an increase of 1.8% during the fourth quarter and 6.1% over the year.

The total return for the year including the payment of income distributions was 11.5%, the company said.

The fund’s property portfolio is now made up of 21,717 beds in 63 properties across 20 UK markets and was independently valued at £1,273 million.

The movement during the fourth quarter represents an increase of 0.6% in the underlying gross property values driven by 0.6% of quarterly rental growth and a year-on-year increase of 3.4%.

The outlook for rental growth in 2012 remains in the 3%-4% range, Unite said.