Invesco Real Estate acquires private rented units for local authority fund

Invesco Real Estate (IRE) has purchased 118 private rented sector (PRS) units in Hayes, West London for $32.5 million on behalf of a UK local authority pension fund.

The transaction is IRE’s first in the UK and was made in partnership with be:here, Willmott Dixon’s PRS company. It follows two recent PRS transactions in Germany for £106 million by IRE and IRE’s appointment of John German as its director of residential investments, to lead the firm’s expansion into the residential sector across Europe. German said: “We are delighted with this first step in providing the opportunity for an institutional investor to access this increasingly important sector in the UK. The project will provide institutional grade, purpose-built, market-leading rental stock in a strategic location with a proven demand for rental product.”

Willmott Dixon said that the development in Hayes will provide homes for young professional renters near what will become one of West London’s busiest Crossrail stations. IRE added that the London residential market is one of the most important in the world for occupiers and investors, and should outperform the mainstream UK residential market.