Thriving Investments launches €233m UK social housing project

UK socially responsible fund manager Thriving Investments has launched a £200 mln (€233 mln) fund to build 1,000 rental homes in Greater Manchester over the next three years.

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The initial £40 mln (€47 mln) has been secured from investors including Greater Manchester Pension Fund, Better Society Capital, and Places for People Group, with £10 mln (€12 mln) debt financing from Greater Manchester Combined Authority. 
This fund will create high-quality, sustainable, and affordable rental housing in Greater Manchester, distinct from traditional subsidized housing. These homes will be offered to essential workers at a discount of up to 20% below market rates, providing access to secure, long-term housing and positively impacting local communities.
The project is expected to generate local jobs, improve infrastructure, enhance living conditions, and reduce cost-of-living pressures. 
Using its integrated housing platform and established relationships with builders, the company will acquire properties through forward funding and forward purchase agreements. Places for People Group's property management arm, Touchstone, will manage the completed homes.
To maximize local economic benefit, Thriving Investments will collaborate with small and medium-sized developers on projects ranging from 50 to 150 homes. All homes will achieve a high energy efficiency rating (EPC B or above). 
Cath Webster, CEO at Thriving Investments, commented: “This new Fund is our first essential worker housing strategy in England and reflects the team’s expertise in finding solutions to the challenge the UK faces in delivering genuinely affordable rental properties, at scale, in critically undersupplied regions.”
The scarcity of affordable, quality housing in Greater Manchester, the second largest city in the UK, has driven a 27.5% surge in market rents over the last two years, outpacing other regions in England and Wales. 
This is Thriving Investments' second such fund and its first in England, with plans to replicate this public-private partnership model in other UK regions.