Grosvenor has set up a £120m (€136.3m) UK residential development debt strategy and issued its first loan to asset manager DWS.

The investor said the new debt strategy has been launched to help further diversify the firm’s £800m UK regional investment portfolio, by financing projects across a broad range of residential tenures. Grosvenor’s existing regional portfolio includes the 42-acre Liverpool ONE retail and entertainment destination and a regional office portfolio.

Grosvenor said it is working in partnership with the CBRE investment advisory lending team which works to originate, structure and execute loans for the lending strategy.

The firm’s first transaction is a £33m loan to help DWS deliver 316 homes to rent in Bath.

Rachel Dickie, executive director of investment at Grosvenor’s UK property business, said: “Despite economic uncertainty and interest rate rises, we believe the housing market continues to be underpinned by a significant under-supply.

“Through our debt strategy, we are bringing together our capital and expertise to back high-quality projects like [the DWS] Bath Junction, that meet housing needs and can demonstrate strong sustainability credentials.”

Andrew Antoniades, the head of lending, CBRE, said: “We are delighted to be working with Grosvenor whose reputation and development expertise is market leading, providing a superb foundation to lend into this market.”

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