European residential investment manager Heim Global Investor has made its first UK investment, forward funding a build-to-rent (BTR) development in Leeds.
Heim has partnered with McLaren Living to deliver the 375-home BeckYard development in the South Bank regeneration area of the city.
The new homes will be spread across two buildings of up to 26 storeys, with completion expected in January 2027. The development is being fully funded by Heim, with grant support from the West Yorkshire Combined Authority’s Brownfield Housing Fund.
In April, Heim launched a new closed-ended UK residential build-to-core fund targeting £800m of equity commitments and the delivery of 5,000 new mid-market rental homes across the UK.
Christian Birrell, head of UK investments at Heim Global Investor, said: “We are thrilled to announce our first investment for our UK build-to-core fund in Leeds. This project is just the first of many projects we plan to deliver, as we develop a 5,000+ unit portfolio targeting mid-market rental homes across the UK’s key cities.
“Leeds is a strong city with an undersupply of affordable rental homes, and we are delighted to be working with such a strong development partner in McLaren Living. BeckYard marks the first investment in our UK fund, and we are currently looking at an interesting pipeline of deals across the UK.”
Matthew Biddle, managing director of McLaren Living, added: “This is a pivotal moment for BeckYard, through our trusted partnership with Heim we’ve secured forward-funding for a major build-to-rent development in Leeds city centre. The best locations and cities across the UK build-to-rent continues to be a resilient sector and we are committed to working with our partners to deliver our strong pipeline of projects.”
Oliver Westray, development director at McLaren Living, said: “Working with Heim as our funding partner we are excited to deliver high quality and much needed new homes in one of the UK’s fastest growing cities. We are creating a new quarter in a thriving city and we anticipate receiving strong rental demand for our high-quality experience-led living.”
