A residential rental business has acquired a prime development site in Birmingham city centre. London-based Outpost Management has bought 'Lower Essex Square' in the city's Southside district, in a joint venture with funder BlackRock Alternatives.
The land, bordered by Lower Essex Street and Hurst Street, has consent for a 628-apartment development which was secured last year by the joint venture seller, Apsley House Capital and Galliard Homes.
The 557,000 sq ft scheme, designed by Claridge Architects, will include 306 one-bedroom, 295 two-bedroom and 27 three-bedroom apartments for rent, with 20,000 sq ft of ground floor commercial and amenity space.
The project will span three buildings, of eight, 12 and 27 storeys respectively, which will also have roof-top gardens and lounges, dining suites, co-working space, a gym and cinema room.
Lower Essex Square will be operated by Outpost Management under its Enclave brand and is the second asset to be acquired by the firm's joint venture with BlackRock Alternatives. It said this was investing £500 million in UK residential assets, following a deal to acquire and develop a project in London.
Troy Tomasik, Outpost Management's founder and chief executive, said: "We are proud to have acquired this fantastic development and are excited to be bringing the Enclave brand to Birmingham as we expand our platform nationally.
"The city's undersupply of housing, projected population and employment growth, proximity to London and increasing retention of higher-education graduates all contribute to making it an ideal location to invest.
"We're on a journey to transform the rental market, by creating pragmatic lifestyle-enabling homes that empower our residents to live their own way and, in less than a year since we launched the Enclave brand, we now have more than 1,550 units in operation or development."
James Halstead, director of BlackRock European Real Estate, added: "We are thrilled to continue our build-to-rent partnership with Outpost, driven by our joint ambition to invest in high-quality, best-in-class assets.
"As this acquisition demonstrates, we continue to see attractive opportunities in the UK residential market, particularly in high-growth areas such as Birmingham. More broadly, it aligns with our wider investment strategy of investing in sectors experiencing strong structural tailwinds."
Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
