Britain’s largest private landlord, the Buccleuch Estate, has teamed up with Native Land to launch a residential developer.
The joint venture – Clan Real Estate– has bought a site off Chiswell Street, EC1, for just over £4m. A planning application for the site, which can accommodate 80,000 sq ft of flats, will be submitted to Islington by the end of the year.
The London-based jv will start with a war chest of £150m to spend over the next two years and will focus on mixed-use and residential developments of up to 100 flats in the capital.
Alasdair Nicholls, chief executive of Native Land, said: “We intend to develop Clan into a leading player in the London market. We have the funds and the experience.”
Native Land was established 18 months ago by Nicholls – formerly managing director of Taylor Woodrow Capital Developments – as a specialist residential development management company operating in central London.
The company was recently shortlisted alongside Helical Bar as a frontrunner for the redevelopment of the Middlesex Hospital, W1.
Buccleuch Property is the commercial property arm of the Buccleuch Group, the holding company owned by the 80-year-old Duke of Buccleuch, who is better known for his passion for field sports than for his involvement in the world of property.
The duke is descended from James Crofts, who was an illegitimate son of Charles II.
In the past year, the estate, under managing director David Peck, has set up a dedicated property team with offices in Edinburgh and London. Its strategy is to build up the group into a major developer and investor over the next five years, doubling in size to over £500m.
