Giant Swedish Investor Makes UK Debut With £160M Resi Deal
Swedish rented residential giant Heimstaden has made its UK debut with the purchase of a big scheme in Birmingham for £160M.
Heimstaden has bought Soho Wharf just outside Birmingham city centre from Apsley House Capital and Galliard Homes. The project consists of 752 homes, three commercial units and 300 parking spaces, with 64 homes being offered at discounted market rents.
The transaction is structured as a turnkey forward-funding project with Galliard as developer and contractor. Heimstaden will fund the development based on construction milestones but does not take on direct development risk. Site work has already started, and construction will be completed in the period Q1 2023-Q1 2024.
Heimstaden is on a €2B investment drive as it looks to expand beyond its home Nordic markets, with the UK and Ireland high on the agenda, React News reported.
The company is one of the biggest rented residential investors in Europe, with a portfolio of 103,345 homes with a gross asset value of £12B at the end of 2020.
The deal is one of the largest single rented residential investments in the UK outside London, as the sector continues to find favour among investors, having proven highly resilient throughout the coronavirus pandemic, with rent payments staying at a high level. CBRE said in April that there were BTR deals totalling £1.5B under offer at the end of the first quarter of this year.
Clifford Chance advised Heimstaden on the Soho Wharf deal.
