Savills IM raises £123m for affordable housing

Savills Investment Management has raised £123m in the first close of its Simply Affordable Homes private fund limited partnership. The fund has been launched with five founding investors: Samsung Life Insurance, London CIV, Big Society Capital, Schroder BSC Social Impact Trust and Savills. It will invest in and manage a diversified portfolio of affordable housing, comprising both affordable and social-rent homes as well as shared-ownership homes, in an open-ended core product designed for institutional investors seeking a low-risk, inflation-linked income stream while also delivering social impact. Savills IM said Simply Affordable Homes RP, the fund’s for-profit registered provider, would  enable it to purchase existing high-quality income-producing stock through establishing strategic partnerships with housing associations and other registered providers, freeing up capital for them to develop more homes. The fund will also facilitate the delivery of new homes and through strategic partnerships with developers and housebuilders to help create much-needed affordable accommodation in the UK. Savills IM chief executive Alex Jeffrey said: “The UK faces serious housing challenges, especially with regard to affordability, and this fund aims to help address this. Investing in UK affordable housing provides opportunities for institutional capital to meet commitments to socially responsible investing and make a significant and positive impact, whilst achieving attractive returns.” Christopher Osborne, head of real estate at London CIV, added that private capital had a “vital role” to play in the affordable housing sector.