Silbury Finance has provided the Senior Living Investment Partners joint venture with a £66.5m loan to fund the acquisition and development of a 112-residence luxury Audley retirement scheme in Surrey.
Headley Court, which sits on a 23-acre site less than two miles from Leatherhead, will comprise 12 two-bedroom apartments within a redeveloped Grade II-listed historic mansion house, along with 100 newly constructed apartments and houses.
The development, which is due to complete in 2027, is targeting a BREEAM rating of Very Good or above. On-site amenities include a restaurant, owners’ lounge and an Audley Club offering wellness facilities, including a pool, sauna and steam room, gym and fitness studio.
The 53-month senior facility is the fifth transaction in the retirement sector between Oaktree Capital Management-backed Silbury and Octopus Real Estate, which is a joint venture partner in Senior Living Investment Partners with Pension Insurance Corporation (PIC).
Gavin Eustace, CEO of Silbury Finance, said: “We continue to further our exposure to the nascent but high growth retirement living sector, focusing on sustainable schemes in areas with supportive local demographics, alongside our institutional partners, having now provided Octopus with circa £270m, and Audley £175m, of senior finance.
“Despite the wider market uncertainty, the UK Living sector’s fundamentals remain highly compelling. Our track record and knowledge, coupled with the backing of a global investor with a strong real estate conviction, provides a differentiated platform as we look to accelerate our deployment in 2024, including writing larger ticket loans, whilst remaining highly disciplined in our underwriting.”
Domas Karsokas, investment director at Octopus Real Estate, added: “We are pleased to be moving forward with the development of what will be a fantastic retirement community in a prime location, where we know demand levels are high. Audley, PIC and Silbury all share our core ESG values here at Octopus, and recognise the acute need to develop retirement communities at pace in the UK. The structure and terms of the debt are well suited to a development project and will support returns to our institutional investors.”
Nick Sanderson, founder and chief executive at Audley Group, said: “The demand for retirement villages is only growing. Octopus and PIC have recognised the opportunity in the retirement space, and we’re delighted to be progressing this new market-leading integrated retirement community alongside SLIP and Silbury.”
