£500m build-to-rent fund launches in London

Developer Avanton has launched a £500m fund to buy land and build rental properties in the capital.

The new fund will target sites across inner London in locations such as Islington, Southwark, Wandsworth, Wimbledon, Hammersmith, Lambeth, Camden and Brent with a view to delivering up to 5,000 build-to-rent units between 2021 and 2023.

Avanton will focus on acquiring sites with land values of £20m to £100m, providing for between 300 to 1,000 units per development.

The developer has already begun to assemble a significant portfolio of build-to-rent pipeline projects. In Richmond, Avanton and partner ICG have a newly consented £250 million (GDV) urban-village development on the 4.45 acre Homebase site off Manor Road.

The development will deliver 453 high quality apartments complete with a pocket-park, retail, community and office uses, and landscaping, designed by award winning architectural practice Assael Architecture.

And on Old Kent Road in Southwark, Avanton has consent for the £730m (GDV) Ruby Triangle project which will provide 1,414 new homes, of which circa 50% will be build-to-rent, with the Farrells designed scheme providing residential towers, between 17 to 48 storeys in height, designed around a central park and complete with sports hall, gymnasium, retail units, workshops and studios.

In addition, Avanton has a third pipeline site in the London Borough of Brent which will allow for 500 build-to-rent units.

‘The only viable solution to London’s housing crisis and the shortage of supply of new homes in the capital is delivering multiple tenure schemes and expanding BTR, intermediate and social housing provision,’ said Avanton chief executive, Omer Weinberger.

‘This is why Avanton is currently undergoing a three-year expansion into the build-to-rent and mixed-tenure sectors. To implement this, we have set aside £500 million and are seeking attractive land opportunities to grow our BTR development pipeline yet further.’

David Ronson, sales and marketing director of Avanton, added: ‘We are seeking to expand our build-to-rent, mixed tenure and private sale portfolios because despite the obvious challenges the property market has been extremely resilient and recovered rapidly last year after the lockdown.

‘This year the market sentiment has been cautiously upbeat as the UK has taken a global lead in the vaccine rollout and we see great opportunity at this moment in the property cycle.’

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