Investec loans Galliard Homes £18 million for East Grinstead office-to-resi conversion

By Bridging Loan Directory 6th October 2021

Investec Real Estate (“Investec”) announces that it has provided Galliard Homes (“Galliard”), the leading South East focused residential property developer, with an £18 million senior facility to fund the development of a 109-unit residential scheme at Newacre House, in East Grinstead, West Sussex.

The 27-month loan will enable Galliard to convert two of the five interconnecting, multi-storey office blocks that make up Newacre House, and which were originally constructed in the mid-1970s, into residential units, as well as refinancing existing debt on the site and help generate income on the remaining three office blocks.

Due to complete from July 2022 onwards, the scheme will feature a mixture of fully furnished one bedroom and studio apartments for sale, available through Help to Buy.

A portion of the homes will include an additional study room, allowing residents to utilise the space as a ‘work from home’ area, a dining room, games room or family snug.

The remaining three office blocks provide circa. 65,000 sq ft of space and are occupied by a mix of tenants.

Newacre House is in the centre of East Grinstead, a bustling medieval market town at the heart of the High Weald area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, designated with National and International protection to preserve its wildlife.

East Grinstead also benefits from excellent transport connectivity, with trains to London Victoria taking less than one hour and the M25 and Gatwick Airport both accessible in c. 20 minutes by car.

Ian Burdett, at Investec, commented:

“Given the UK’s chronic housing shortage and the Covid-19 pandemic acting as a catalyst for a more flexible way of working, we can expect to see more projects like this that take older office buildings and transform them into high quality, contemporary homes.

We have worked with Galliard on multiple transactions over the years and are pleased to support them on this latest venture.

Once completed, Newacre House will be perfectly suited to first time buyers or buy-to-let landlords looking for a comfortable and functional property that is well located with easy access to London and surrounding countryside.”

Jonathan Morgan, Director of Investment & Developments at Galliard, commented:

“We are pleased to be continuing our longstanding relationship with Investec, the longevity of which is testament to the team’s ability to work quickly and flexibly to meet our financing requirements on a range of different projects.

This latest loan will enable us to transform Newacre House into much needed high- quality housing.”

This is Investec’s twelfth deal with Galliard, having previously provided finance for projects including The Stage, a £750 million mixed use scheme in Shoreditch, London.