Long Harbour, the alternative real estate asset manager, has announced it has agreed a joint venture partnership with Seven Capital to forward fund the construction of The Lansdowne at 2 Hagley Road on the western side of central Birmingham and will retain full ownership once the 206 unit bespoke private rented sector (‘PRS’) scheme has been completed in 2019. Interserve, the International Support Services and Construction Group, have been appointed as preferred contractor to deliver the scheme.

Full planning permission for The Lansdowne was granted in December 2015 for 139 one-bedroom, 63 two-bedroom and 4 three-bedroom apartments with 96 car parking spaces. Contracts on the cleared site, which was previously a two storey car park, were exchanged last week and are expected to be completed before the end of November on the proposed sixteen storey building.

Long Harbour will fund the development of The Lansdowne through the Long Harbour Income Fund, its £214m institutional fund focused on delivering high quality residential homes for rent. The scheme has been specifically designed for rent and will offer its residents a concierge service, storage facilities, bike storage, gym, café and work/study space.

In the summer, Birmingham City Council’s strategic director for the economy, Waheed Nazir, said that over the next 15 years Birmingham required a significant number of new homes to meet the needs of its growing population and support its economic growth agenda.

James Aumonier, Executive Director, said: “We are very pleased to have closed another deal in the sector with this being the income fund’s first forward fund deal and one of Birmingham’s first PRS schemes to commence construction. Our partners Seven Capital and Interserve have worked hard with us to bring the scheme to fruition and we look forward to working with them on this scheme and on future opportunities. Birmingham’s central districts are becoming increasingly attractive to employers and the young professionals working for them, The Lansdowne will offer local residents with the highest quality apartments, private amenity and concierge services once it is completed in the first quarter of 2019.”

Mark Evans, head of regional residential development at Knight Frank, commented: “The confirmed funding of Lansdowne House is a real success story for Birmingham city centre. The deal is one of the very first residential forward funding agreements to take place in the city and will facilitate the construction of much needed high quality purpose built rental accommodation. Across the city centre, Birmingham has a fundamental lack of private sale and rental properties, making projects such as Lansdowne House key to the city’s growth. As an asset class, we see the emergence and demand for PRS continuing to develop in years to come.”

Long Harbour has now acquired over £250m of residential property, over 1,200 units, and has significant further capital to invest. Long Harbour will be managing this asset through its in-house management platform that currently also runs the existing portfolio of PRS and over 150,000 residential freehold ground rents.

About Seven Capital

Seven Capital is a Birmingham and London based property investment and development company active in both the residential and commercial sector. The team of 60 real estate professional’s team has track record in the delivery of complex real estate schemes and is currently managing approximately four million square feet of projects. This includes a £250m commercial portfolio but also 4,691 residential units across 19 schemes with a development value of circa £850m. The company is regarded as one of the most active residential developers in the Birmingham market having carved a significant niche in the city living sector.

Please visit www.sevencapital.com for more information.

About Interserve

Interserve is one of the world’s foremost support services and construction companies. Our vision is to redefine the future for people and places. Everything we do is shaped by our core values. We are a successful, growing, international business: a leader in innovative and sustainable outcomes for our clients and a great place to work for our people. We offer advice, design, construction, equipment, facilities management and frontline public services. Headquartered in the UK and FTSE listed, we have gross revenues of £3.6 billion and a workforce of circa 80,000 people worldwide.

Please visit www.interserve.com for more information.