ATLANTA—A 1.5-acre site that currently houses a former Ramada hotel, rental car facility and garage here will house a new student housing complex by next summer, if all goes as planned. An Ambling University Development Group affiliate bought the parcel from Legacy Palms LLC in a $7.9-million deal brokered by Bull Realty’s John DeYonker.

The allure of the student housing market, as well as the site’s location—within walking distance of Georgia State University’s new business and law schools—helped draw multiple offers. “We had interest from developers all around the country, but the seller chose to work with a Georgia group that had experience in the GSU market," said DeYonker, vice president of land and developer services at Bull Realty. Ambling’s project, he added, “will be a good fit with the planned GSU projects in the immediate area.”

To be built in two phases, the student housing complex will first renovate the 200-room abandoned hotel into a 138-unit, 291-bed community, that will have its initial opening in the summer of 2013. A new tower, to be built next door, will house 424 beds in 108 units, as well as a new parking garage. The second component will debut in 2014.