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New investment model for rented housing
Published: 2009-05-26 10:34:54
The HCA’s first investment vehicle, announced this month, will purchase up to 2,000 houses and flats in the South East and convert them mainly into student accommodation.
With a planned budget of £200 million, the scheme is to be run by the Bespoke Property Group and Unite, a specialist in student housing.
Unite chief executive Mark Allan said a number of potential investors are in negotiation and that “Unite has pioneered a student accommodation model which we believe could provide an example of the type of scheme the HCA is proposing”. The likely route will be for housebuilders either to sell properties to Bespoke or to invest in the fund.
Making a proper investment class out of private rented housing would help draw in funds on a much larger scale and there have been reports of potential interest from the likes of Legal and General, Moorfield Group, ING and the Wellcome Trust.