Grainger investments top £3bn
Build-to-rent giant Grainger has grown its investments to £3.1bn – a 5.2% annual increase – as it continues an ambitious growth plan.
In results for the year ended 30 September, Grainger reported a 6.4% rise in BTR investments to £1.6bn.
Its investments currently under development have also surged, with work in progress up 35% to £378m – spanning both forward funded BTR and other development in progress.
Build-to-rent giant Grainger has grown its investments to £3.1bn – a 5.2% annual increase – as it continues an ambitious growth plan.
In results for the year ended 30 September, Grainger reported a 6.4% rise in BTR investments to £1.6bn.
Its investments currently under development have also surged, with work in progress up 35% to £378m – spanning both forward funded BTR and other development in progress.
Grainger’s regulated tenancies fell by 4.8% to £968m as part of the business strategy to focus on BTR schemes.
During the year, Grainger acquired six new BTR schemes adding £413m to the pipeline and 1,475 new homes in Guildford (pictured), Birmingham, Cardiff, Nottingham and London.
It reported balance sheet funds of £650m, fuelled by an equity raise and bond issue earlier in the year.
The investment pipeline currently sits at £2.1bn, of which £1.1bn is secured, £429m is in planning and legals and £600m in a joint venture with Transport for London.
Chief executive Helen Gordon said: “Recent events have not slowed our appetite for growth and we have continued to focus on acquisitions in our target cities.”
She added: “Our plans will see Grainger’s portfolio of PRS homes double again in the next five years.”
The landlord completed 612 new homes in the year, falling below expectations of around 1,000 homes due to halts on two major schemes during the pandemic.
However, the operational platform has continued to grow, which in turn has slowed rental growth.
Grainger reported rental income up 16% to £74m. But like-for-like rental growth for the year fell to 3%, led by 2.5% growth for its BTR assets and 4.6% in its legacy regulated tenancies.
This compares to overall rental growth of 3.6% in 2019. Grainger said a large proportion of BTR renewals had slowed growth as the business focused on retaining customers.
Gordon said: “The private rental market generally has seen higher levels of churn and pressure on rents and we have outperformed due to the quality of our assets, our mid-market position and importantly, the quality of our people and operating platform.”
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