Investment group to launch new REIT

In contrast to Civitas, however, Triple Point will invest in forward funding, potentially buying properties that have not yet been built, once agreements to lease have been agreed with approved providers. After buying properties, the group will lease them back to providers.

Mr Phillips said: “Triple Point Social Housing REIT will provide investors with access to an asset class that is proving increasingly attractive. The steady, index-linked income streams from social housing, and in particular from supported housing, are highly protected, as the rent is paid effectively by the government through housing and other benefits.

“There is increasing political and financial pressure on housing associations to increase their housing delivery and this is creating opportunities for private sector investors to participate in the market.”

Howard Webb, director at Capita, was sceptical of the new trust. He told Inside Housing: “The structure is effectively an arbitrage on the regulator. They’re telling the investors: ‘Don’t worry, it’s a regulated provider. The regulator is going to come in and sort it out so you’re not going to lose any money.’

“I think the investors should think very hard about whether that will in fact happen.”

Ion Fletcher, director of finance policy at the British Property Federation, on the other hand, was more positive, commenting: “A diversity of sources of funding for any kind of housing at the moment is a good thing and REITs are an additional vehicle for investing in property, so broadly I think it’s positive that there’s another source of capital for funding housing.”

He also noted: “I hope that investors will make an informed decision and ask the right questions of management before they decide to commit money to it.”

Triple Point has already agreed to acquire five properties from a company within the Triple Point Group, for £17.9m.

James Cranmer, managing partner at Triple Point Investment Management, said: “We will invest in an identified and growing portfolio of social housing assets and offer attractive returns to shareholders, working with housing associations, care providers, local authorities and private developers over the long term to provide additional specialised supported housing and general needs accommodation, as well as acquiring assets from private vendors and aggregators or housing associations looking to divest non-core stock.”