The move is part of a fresh drive by Invesco to target UK residential property, first reported by our sister publication Portfolio Adviser.
The initial capital has come from five institutional investors across Australia, Canada and the UK. There are further closings planned over the next 12 months, the firm said.
Invesco Real Estate said it has already identified “£1bn of diversified pipeline opportunities” across London and the southeast. The firm said the new fund seeks to “respond to the clear opportunity created by Britain’s growing imbalance in residential supply and demand”.
The fund will focus on “large scale, high quality opportunities in recognised locations, within proven letting markets.” Invesco said that by working directly with contractors and developers, the fund is able to source off-market opportunities, which it says is an important differentiator.
Invesco claimed its track record in multi-family investments across the US and Asia, as well as the firm’s initial European residential investments in the UK and Germany in the past 18 months demonstrate its capability in this area.
“The PRS or ‘multi-family’ sector is an established and well-understood asset class in parts of Europe and North America, so we are particularly pleased to have attracted experienced investors from these regions to our UK PRS fund,” said John German, IRE’s senior director of residential investment, responsible for spearheading the effort.
