M&G Real Estate has acquired a newly completed build-to-rent development in the southeastern Australian city of Melbourne for A$215m (€135m) from Australian developer Novus.
The 17-storey Bowen Crescent building offers 215 apartments and sits in a market with 1% rental vacancies.
With the latest transaction, M&G Real Estate has committed around US$500m (€446m) in six assets, including student, land lease communities and senior housing, across Asia Pacific.
The acquisition builds on M&G’s existing develop-to-core partnership with Novus in Australia. Novus develops and operates purpose-built rental housing in one of the country’s most established residential rental markets.
Jing Dong (JD) Lai, CEO and CIO of M&G Real Estate Asia, said: “Bowen Crescent is a high-quality asset in one of Australia’s strongest residential markets and marks the Asia Living Property Strategy’s first investment in the build-to-rent sector.”
“The living sector is one of the most compelling long-term investment opportunities across Asia-Pacific, underpinned by population growth, urbanisation and changing lifestyle preferences. Australia stands out as a market where demand for professionally managed rental housing continues to grow, supported by strong demographic trends.”
In March this year, M&G formed a 49.9:50.1 strategic land lease partnership with leading Australian property group, Stockland, seeded with two projects in Victoria earmarked for 573 homes.
M&G is Novus’s latest foreign investor. Last month, Novus formed a Japanese investment consortium, comprising Kanden Realty & Development, the Japan Overseas Infrastructure Investment Corporation for Transport & Urban Development and Cosmos Initia, to develop a A$350m project, known as Novus on Forest.
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