Urban Splash secures £20m for resi shopping spree 

Barclays has provided the Manchester-based developer with a debt facility to fund its next wave of acquisitions. 

Urban Splash Residential Fund’s new £20m facility, which has a further £20m accordion, will allow the company to “accelerate its acquisition strategy to build an institutional-scale portfolio of design-led rental homes across the UK”, according to a statement. 

So far, the fund has acquired site across the North West in Prestwich, Altrincham, and New Islington in Manchester. 

In the past year, the fund has expanded its portfolio by more than 30%, acquiring 80 homes in Manchester and beyond from developers and institutional landlords including Places for People, Oval Real Estate, and Javelin Block. 

Since being established in 2017, the fund has raised £150m of equity from institutional and high-net-worth investors and owns and manages 307 homes. 

The portfolio features a range of homes from studio apartments to four-bedroom townhouses and has an average rent of around £1,100 per month. 

Barclays’ resi facility comes less than a year after Urban Splash secured a £43m, eight-year facility with Aviva Investors to spend on commercial properties in Manchester and Liverpool. 

Earlier this year US signed a £10m deal with Grosvenor to buy land and assets across the country.   

Fund manager Akeel Malik said: “After five years of solid growth, we are delighted to have nurtured another positive relationship, securing this facility with Barclays. 

“The support of such a prominent financial institution helps create a solid foundation as we see attractive off-market opportunities to bolster our nationwide portfolio.” 

Jason Constable, head of real estate at Barclays Corporate Banking, said the deal “underlines [the bank’s] ongoing commitment to the UK housing sector.” 

GunnerCooke, Gorvins, and Deloitte advised Urban Splash, while Barclays was represented by Osborne Clarke and JLL.