UK: Outpost Management has acquired a pre-approved 628-unit development at Lower Essex Square in Birmingham.
The deal has been brokered through its joint venture with BlackRock. Outpost has bought the scheme from Lower Essex – a subsidiary of Apsley House Capital and Galliard Homes.
The 557,000 square foot residential-led, mixed-use scheme, designed by Claridge Architects, will include 306 one-bedroom, 295 two-bedroom and 27 three-bedroom apartments for rent, with 20,000 square feet of ground floor commercial and amenity space, across three separate buildings of 27, 12 and eight storeys respectively.
The Lower Essex Square site 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, through its real estate business, which is investing £500 million in UK residential assets. It follows the acquisition, development and opening of Enclave: KX in London in 2022.
Construction work will start imminently, with phased completion expected from summer 2025 to summer 2026.
Troy Tomasik, Outpost Management founder and CEO, 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 1550 units in operation or development,” he added.
James Halstead, director of BlackRock European Real Estate, said: “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.”
