The investment arm of US property group CBRE has completed the registration of its for-profit affordable housing provider with the Regulator of Social Housing, Inside Housing Living can reveal.
A CBRE IM affordable housing scheme in Canary Wharf, east London (picture: CBRE IM)
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Exclusive: The investment arm of US property group CBRE has completed the registration of its for-profit affordable housing provider with the Regulator of Social Housing #UKhousingCBRE Investment Management’s (IM) new for-profit provider will give it more flexibility to procure government grant and grow its affordable housing portfolio.
The property group has been active in UK affordable housing for eight years, but it previously operated its homes without the use of a registered provider.
Its new for-profit provider is called AHF FPRP, but this will change in the future, Inside Housing Living understands.
The for-profit is chaired by Steven Dennis, former chief executive of Saxon Weald housing association. Its other board members include Charlie Cutler, former general counsel at care home operator HC-One, and Jamie Ratcliff, chair of The Housing Forum.
Ann Xu, portfolio manager of the CBRE UK Affordable Housing Fund, told Inside Housing Living: “Having grown and stabilised a portfolio of more than 3,000 homes, we feel now is the right time to establish our own for-profit registered provider.
“This will provide greater flexibility to accelerate the delivery of high-quality affordable housing and support our long-term growth ambitions.
“We have enjoyed a collaborative relationship with the regulator and we are pleased to formalise that relationship with the launch of our registered provider.”
CBRE IM launched its affordable housing fund in 2018. It has allocated £700m of capital to date, mostly from local government pension schemes. There are 24 investors in total, including some impact funds and a defined contribution pension scheme.
The fund currently owns 3,200 homes, 70% of which are operational and 30% of which are in development. Around 60% of the homes are social or affordable rent, 20% are discounted market rent and 20% are shared ownership.
The affordable housing portfolio is spread across the UK and includes flats in London and houses across Oxfordshire, Hertfordshire and Wiltshire.
CBRE IM subcontracts the management of its affordable homes to third-party firms such as Pinnacle Group.
The firm has £11.3bn of assets under management in the UK and Europe. Its investments span affordable housing, multifamily and single-family private rented housing.
In May, it launched a fund with build-to-rent landlord Moda Living to build 1,500 single-family homes across the UK. The fund acquired 222 rental homes in July from house builder Bellway.
