In Coggeshall, North Essex, Vistry Group will deliver 36 homes, the first of which will be available at the start of 2024. Residents will enjoy a countryside market town location, with the benefit of close travel links to the A12 & M11 as well as direct train links into London Liverpool St.
The second scheme, in Elsenham, north-west Essex, will be developed by Dandara and will deliver 27 homes, with the first units completing in summer 2024. It is well located by the M11, with Stansted Airport and Bishop’s Stortford nearby, whilst the village railway station also connects directly into London Liverpool St.
Picture Living has a mandate to invest in high-quality new or modern homes for rent across the UK. It currently has an AUM of £350 million and has amassed a portfolio of c. 1,725 single family homes and apartments to date, including just over 160 currently under development. It recently took full ownership of 106 single family homes across three schemes in Market Harborough, Warwick and Derby, all delivered by Avant Homes. Progress is also being made at Heyford Park, Bicester, which comprises 100 homes, where the first homes are expected to be available to residents in early 2024.
With strong end user demand and growing appetite from housebuilders to de-risk their schemes, Picture Living is looking to grow the portfolio over the next 12 months. Running in parallel with Picture Living’s acquisition strategy has been the sale of two portfolios, Spark and Seville, which has enabled the recycling of capital to target new single family homes. These transactions represent the latest milestone for Picture Living following the recent appointments of Jamie Younger as Fund Manager and James Nicholls as Investment Manager.
"We are delighted to have exchanged on our next deal with Vistry Group and partnered for the first time with Dandara and we look forward to working closely with both companies as we deliver each respective scheme. We gladly align ourselves with like-minded firms, allowing us to leverage each other's strengths and expertise to bring more professionally managed rental homes to the market"
James Nicholls, Investment Manager, Thriving Investments
"With rising interest rates making home ownership more difficult for people financially, the demand for good quality rental product in the right locations has never been higher. We are continuing our ambitious regional PRS pipeline on behalf of our institutional capital partners, with Picture Living closing in on 2,000 homes. We will continue to invest in high-quality homes for rent working alongside house builders and developers to help alleviate the chronic housing shortage in the UK."
Jamie Younger, Fund Manager, Thriving Investments