“In the space of the last few years, the BTR sector has really come into its own. It has cemented its position in the UK as an asset class and successfully evolved away from the private rented sector. Showing its resilience and relative counter cyclical nature of the residential sector, BTR has remained largely unaffected throughout the coronavirus pandemic, as occupancy, rent collection and demand has remained high.
The Hockley Mills development further strengthens our existing portfolio, bringing our total number of schemes to 16 in eleven cities providing more than 5,300 apartments. The scheme will deliver high-quality, professionally-managed rental accommodation that can help to address the supply demand imbalance in Birmingham.”
Dan Batterton, Senior Fund Manager, BTR, LGIM Real Assets
”During periods of economic stress, residential assets are seen as extremely attractive by investors, in part due to both their resilience and counter-cyclical rental performance. Our view remains that, long term, the current Covid-19 crisis may well act as a catalyst for an acceleration of institutional capital into the UK’s residential investment sector.
Since March activity has remained strong as investors seek to increase their exposure in the UK market – indeed, recent Knight Frank research found that 77% of investors are looking to maintain or increase their investment plans in the near future. As the UK’s largest city outside of London, investment in Birmingham’s BTR market has always been strong. However thanks to the regeneration of the city centre and the upcoming HS2 line enabling even quicker links into the capital, demand by investors for high quality rental assets is certainly on the rise and is showing no signs of slowing down, despite the current wider market headwinds.”
Hannah Badger, Associate in the Residential Capital Markets team at Knight Frank
