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New social housing aggregator funds 2,200 homes in first year

Social housing bond aggregator MORhomes has helped to fund the delivery of 2,233 housing association homes in the 12 months since the launch of its much-anticipated debut bond.

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New social housing aggregator funds 2,200 homes in first year #ukhousing

MORhomes has lent £312.5m to 11 associations since its debut bond last February #ukhousing

The organisation revealed in its first social impact report since launching the bond last February that it has now lent £312.5m to 11 associations.

The report also detailed the tenures of the new homes that the money had funded, including 1,206 social and affordable rent homes, 536 shared ownership homes and 171 for private sale. The money helped to deliver homes in 36 local authority areas.

MORhomes was set up in 2017 and lists 63 housing associations as shareholders.


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A large part of the funding for the year came through £260m loaned out to nine housing associations through its debut bond last February, which saw associations including A2Dominion, EMH Group, Local Space, Pobl and South Yorkshire Housing Association benefit.

The £260m was significantly smaller than the £1bn of bonds the aggregator initially expected to issue, and the organisation missed its target of lending the money at 1% over the government rate of borrowing.

Patrick Symington, chief executive of MORhomes, told Inside Housing last year that the aggregator had struggled because of being a start-up and “the political uncertainty around Brexit and other wider global issues, such as the USA-China trade war”.

He also said £1bn a year in bonds is an aspiration in the coming years.

The 66 developments MORhomes’ money funded last year included Aster’s £12m, 70-home development in Liphook, Hampshire, while nearly £10m went to Gwalia’s Goodig Hotel development, which delivered 105 homes in Burry Port, Llanelli.

Local Space, a partnership led by Newham Council, has borrowed £50m through MORhomes and has spent the money on street properties across London, including £10m on properties in Barking, £12m in Newham and nearly £8m in Havering.

Neil Hadden, chair of MORhomes and former chief executive of Genesis, said: “We are proud to take a step back to view the collective impact of MORhomes’ borrowers and to see that our founding ambition is being realised.

“We believe private investment has an important role to play in improving housing supply and delivering strong social impact. For socially conscious investors, housing associations are an excellent bet when it comes to achieving a strong return on investment both financially and in terms of social impact.

“Not only are they providing desperately needed homes, they are creating communities, supporting jobs and opportunities, reducing isolation, and improving health and well-being. This is just the start of the story for MORhomes and we are proud to showcase the impact our borrowers are having on lives and communities.”

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