Legal & General’s UK affordable housing arm has bought its largest single affordable housing scheme to date with the acquisition of The Deanston Wharf in London, 

Legal & General Affordable Homes has paid an undisclosed amount for the scheme which will provide 207 new affordable homes within Ballymore’s Royal Wharf regeneration scheme in East London.

IPE Real Assets understands the scheme Legal & General Affordable Homes is buying is worth more than £50m (€58.4m). 

Launched in April 2018, the Legal & General Affordable Homes business was set up with a plan to accelerate and grow the provision of affordable housing across the UK, targeting all areas of the affordable housing market, including new build and grant-funded affordable rent, social rent and shared ownership units.

The latest investment lifts the development pipeline of Legal & General Affordable Homes to over 6,000 homes across, with 1,000 homes currently in operation, worth a total gross asset value of over £1bn.

Ben Denton, CEO of Legal & General Affordable Homes, said: “We have made great progress since we started trading in 2019, and the signing of this great quality affordable housing at Deanston Wharf with Ballymore is another milestone. The pandemic has affected every corner of our lives and has emphasised the need to provide safe, secure, affordable housing for families right across the country.

“We continue to prove the model of deploying institutional capital at scale to meet affordable housing need alongside delivering sector-leading customer service satisfaction through our network of management providers.

“Working alongside our management providers, developers and suppliers we remain committed to leading the evolution of the affordable housing sector for the benefit of our customers, our stakeholders and society”

John Mulryan, group managing director at Ballymore, said: “The need for affordable housing has never been more pressing and so we’re proud to be partnering with L&G Affordable Homes on Deanston Wharf.

“This deal is testament not only to the quality of housing we are delivering at Deanston Wharf, but also the strength of the wider community at Royal Wharf, and we look forward to continuing the regeneration of this exciting area of London.”

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