UK: Macquarie Asset Management’s BTR platform Goodstone Living has secured debt financing for its first BTR development in Scotland.
Goodstone Living has agreed £67 million of debt financing with Natwest for the development of its Dockside scheme in Leith, Edinburgh. The 338-unit waterfront scheme will have panoramic views and resident amenity spaces including rooftop lounge and dining, coworking areas and a fitness centre. There will also be ore than one acre of public realm space.
Goodstone’s development team has re-engineered the project, which was acquired last year, to fully electrify the scheme with an air source heat pump in each apartment. This will help reduce operational carbon emissions by up to 55 per cent compared with the standard set out in Part L of the Building Regulations*.
The Goodstone team is also targeting a 30 per cent reduction against RIBA’s 2030 Climate Challenge embodied carbon benchmark, with measures including the replacement of cement with Ground Granulated Blast-furnace Slag and the use of locally manufactured materials to minimise transport distances.
The project will create 60 local jobs and a targeted £2 million worth of socio-economic benefits for the local community over 30 months. Plans are in place to enable community groups and enterprises to use some of the available commercial space.
Carl White, investment director at Goodstone Living, said: “The size, scale and timing of this financing package underscores how defensive build-to-rent has become as an asset class. We continue to be attracted to Edinburgh’s growing rental population and falling supply which is creating enhanced demand for our high-quality, purpose-built and professionally-managed communities.”
“Natwest’s recognition of the need to invest additional capital to exceed current building regulations has been very welcome and we are committed to working in partnership with them to deliver not only a great project for our customers, but a fantastic new community hub for Leith,” he added.
Michael Goode, director and BTR lead at Natwest, said: “We have long been supportive of build-to-rent for its structural characteristics, which have proven themselves throughout the last few years, as schemes have remained full and continued to attract investment. It is great to support a project seeking to not only reduce the severe demand supply imbalance in Edinburgh, but also to decarbonise both the construction and the operation of over 300 new homes for rent – each of which will have an air source heat pump.”
