A private charity client has appointed Gerald Eve to sell Project Oak, a 192-unit West London social housing portfolio with a guide price of £37.4 mln (€43 mln).
The portfolio is available on a long-leasehold basis, with an average of over 164 years unexpired, with the guide price reflecting a net initial yield of 4.25%. The 192 homes in the London borough of Ealing are let on individual leases to registered social housing provider Plexus UK, guaranteed by Mears Group for an unexpired lease term of over 15 years, and further secured by a nominations agreement with Ealing Council for a remaining 55 years.
All the units are one, two or three-bedroom apartments within purpose-built blocks in established residential locations, with the majority clustered around Northolt, Southall and Greenford. The freehold of nearly 60% of the assets are owned by the London Borough of Ealing, with the remainder held by private landlords or housing associations.
Richard Lines, partner at Gerald Eve, said: ‘Project Oak represents an exciting and rare opportunity to secure exposure to an asset class that is seeing increased demand as investors target both the residential and socially responsible real estate markets.’
