Legal and General to create Bath build to rent development

The development will be situated on brownfield land in the Bath City Riverside Enterprise Area and will include 17,000 sq fr of retail space. LGIM Real Assets purchased the site for £47.5m on behalf of its build to rent fund, together with its joint venture partnership between Legal & General Capital (LGC), the Group’s principal investment arm, and PGGM, the Dutch Pension Fund Manager.

Dan Batterton, BTR Fund Manager at LGIM Real Assets, called the acquisition “a prime example of the type of compelling opportunities there are in the market at the moment”.

He added: “We are targeting well-located sites where there is the opportunity to influence all aspects of design and construction from the start to create a best-in-class product that will provide a positive lifestyle choice for elective renters. We remain on track to deliver on the growth plans for our major Build to Rent platform focused on holding assets for the long-term on behalf of investors.”

The Bath development is Legal & General’s fourth build to rent scheme, with sites already underway in Bristol, Salford and Walthamstow.

In its Housing White Paper, published last month, the government called for the construction of more build to rent homes.

A consultation is currently underway on the changes to planning policy which could encourage authorities to to plan for build to rent schemes. The consultation closes on May 1.