Goldman Sachs enters UK BTR sector

Goldman Sachs has made it first foray into the UK’s build-to-rent market by providing Apache Capital Partners with a £118m debt facility for the construction of Birmingham’s tallest residential building, which it is delivering with Moda Living. The scheme, which will create 481 rental flats in a 42-storey tower at 212-223 Broad Street, has a gross development value of £184m. Goldman Sachs’ loan is for 4.5 years, but includes a 12-month extension option. The project will also provide around 31,000 sq ft of amenity space, including co-working areas, communal lounges and dining facilities, as well as a rooftop running track and 35,000 sq ft of retail and commercial space. The funding deal is part of Apache Capital’s plans to accelerate delivery of its BTR pipeline with Moda. In October 2018, the firm created the UK’s biggest privately-funded multi-family investment platform when it partnered with Harrison Street Real Estate and NFU Mutual to create a new platform to fund seven of its initial schemes with Moda. Apache Capital also brought in LaSalle Investment Management to fund Moda’s Lexington project in Liverpool through a four-year £58.5m senior debt facility, while an £85m loan from Deutsche Pfandbriefbank was obtained for its Angel Gardens scheme in Manchester. Chris Semones of Goldman Sachs’ merchant banking division said: “This transaction continues our originate-to-hold strategy for large loans against high quality projects with excellent sponsorship, strong market fundamentals and resilient cash flows.” He added that the transaction brought Goldman Sachs’ total European credit investing over the past three years to $1.4bn through its real estate debt funds, Broad Street Real Estate Credit Partners.   To send feedback, e-mail louise.dransfield@egi.co.uk or tweet @DransfieldL or @estatesgazette