First build to rent scheme gets government funding

The first tranche of government funding has been agreed for a build to rent project.

A total of £3.5m will fund 102 homes for private rent, which are to be built by Crest Nicholson as part of a £500m scheme at Southampton.

The Centenary Quay scheme, built on the old Vospey Thorneycroft shipyard, will eventually have 1,600 homes.

The 102 rental homes will be sold on completion to a housing association, A2 Dominion Group, which will run the portfolio for private, not social, tenants.

The £3.5m is coming from the Government’s £1bn build to rent fund. Funding is made available in the form of repayable loans or investments.  

Andy Rose, chief executive of the Homes and Communities Agency, which is managing the fund, said: “Southampton’s Centenary Quay is the first build to rent scheme to enter a contract.

“This is great news, stimulating new private rented housing supply and leading to opportunities for new investment in the area.

“Centenary Quay is an extremely important and exciting project. We have already seen success in the first phase of the project, and the next phase will see hundreds more houses being built, transforming a redundant shipyard into somewhere people want to live and work.”