Italian asset manager Coima Sgr has revealed plans for a major expansion into social housing with the creation of a new platform in partnership with local housing cooperative consortium Consorzio Cooperative Lavoratori (CCL) as well as the launch of a €300 mln fund.
The Coima Housing Fund (Coima Housing) is a new closed-end real estate fund dedicated to sustainable living, which will focus on the development of a range of types of social and subsidised housing, as well as student accommodation. Coima Housing has a target size of more than €400 mln with an initial scheduled closing of around €300 mln.
The primary investor of Coima Housing is the Coima ESG City Impact Fund (CECIF), Italy’s largest dedicated urban regeneration fund, which is backed by a number of Italian pension funds including Enpam Foundation, Cassa Forense, Cassa Dottori Commercialisti, Inarcassa, as well as bank BCC Credito Cooperativo, Foundation Cariparo, Compagnia di San Paolo and Coima Sgr itself.
Intesa Sanpaolo, the banking group, will also enter Coima Housing, as part of its mission to support the development of 8,000 social housing homes for young people and seniors.
The partnership between CCL and Coima is aimed at providing a new model for the development of social and subsidised housing, a sector in which the initiative has long been mainly entrusted to the public sector, Coima said in a statement. 'The partnership brings together housing co-operatives with private investors to develop innovative residential projects throughout Italy, with a focus on mixed-use sustainable urban developments that fully integrate different types of social and subsidised housing.'
Coima Housing's first project will provide 320 homes as part of the wider large-scale regeneration of the Porta Romana railway yard, home to the 2026 Winter Olympic Athletes’ Village.
The masterplan for the wider regeneration of Porta Romana, being developed by Coima Sgr with co-investors Prada Holding, Covivio and the Coima ESG City Impact Fund (CECIF), foresees the development of around 50,000 m2 of social housing.
Coima Housing will invest in the transformation of the Olympic Village (30,000 m2), into student housing after the Games, with the provision of 1,700 beds helping address a major shortage of high-quality student accommodation in Milan.
Manfredi Catella, co-founder and chief executive of Coima, said: 'Shared values and principles inspired the agreement with CCL, joining forces in a commitment to contribute to the evolution of our cities with objectives of social and environmental impact. The partnership with CCL and the cooperative world will enable complementary experiences and skills to be put to work in collaboration with key public and private stakeholders. At the same time, the launch of the industrial platform dedicated to urban regeneration and sustainable infrastructure together with Intesa San Paolo will help to accelerate and scale up strategic projects for the country.'
