M&G Real Estate’s UK residential property fund has added 325 private-rented sector (PRS) apartments to its portfolio with the acquisition of two residential schemes worth £93.4m (€105m).
The UK Residential Property Fund has bought the schemes in Sutton and Bournemouth from Watkin Jones Group.
The fund paid £54.4m for the 24-34 Sutton Court Road asset, which will provide 166 new apartments – 136 of which will be PRS units, 18 discounted market rent units and 12 units to be let at London living rent levels.
Construction is anticipated to complete in June 2021.
The fund also acquired the Holdenhurst Road asset in Bournemouth for £39m. The scheme will provide 159 homes over 18 floors. The development will also include two retail units and four floors of office space.
Construction is well underway with completion expected in March 2020.
The latest deals take the total number of the residential property fund’s units to over 3,200 operating or under construction.
Andrew Cook, assistant fund manager of the M&G UK Residential Property Portfolio said: “These acquisitions offer us an excellent opportunity to take advantage of constrained supply and the continued demand for high-quality rental accommodation, particularly in London commuter towns such as Sutton and growing property hot spots like Bournemouth.”
Cook said through these deals, the fund will be able to provide its investors with the opportunity to continue capitalising on the UK’s fast-growing private rental market.
”The growing demand for such developments shows that renting – coupled with high-quality service, support and amenities – offers customers the security and flexibility that they expect in this day and age.”
