December 20th 2023
Hightown Housing Association strikes £125m green private placement deal
Six UK and North American investors across 10-20 year maturities have helped fund new sustainable homes in the south.
Based in Hemel Hempstead, Hightown has provided more than 8,700 homes to over 15,000 customers and has a strong track record of developing social housing with no exposure to outright sales activity. Against this backdrop, the organisation have just secured a deal, worth £125m, to continue delivering much-needed properties.
The association, which is not naming the investors as the information is commercially sensitive, aims to complete more than 1,000 new homes over the next two years.
Hightown launched a transaction to the market in September 2023 for a new green private placement and received bids from both new and existing investors based in both the UK and North America.
The issue was significantly oversubscribed, with Lloyds Bank acting as sole private placement agent and Savills Financial Consultants supporting as financial advisor for Hightown.
Now that Hightown has had the deal confirmed, the transaction will enable the company to continue to deliver new high-quality, affordable housing in its core areas of operation and will support its stated mission of ‘Building Homes. Supporting People’.
‘We are delighted to have been able to agree this funding from six investors, four of whom were new to Hightown,’ David Bogle, chief executive at Hightown said. ‘This is £125m adds a welcome degree of flexibility to the funding of our development programme. The funds will be used to deliver energy-efficient, affordable homes in our core areas of Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, and Buckingham where there is substantial need and demand. We are pleased to have been able to satisfy the investors both on the solidity of our current operations and also on our plans for delivering social impact, active resident involvement and sustainable homes in the future.’
In addition, George Flynn, director at Savills Financial Consultants, has claimed that this new deal will also help provide a shed of hope during a time when the sector is facing a ‘multitude of challenges’.
George said: ‘Savills Financial Consultants is proud to have been able to provide Hightown with independent advice and support through this important and successful transaction. It is really pleasing to see Hightown welcome new investor relationships to the organisation, ensuring a strong platform for future issues. At a time when the sector is facing a multitude of challenges and uncertainties, this financing provides the organisation with valuable stability that will facilitate its continued impressive growth over the coming years.’
Image: Hightown
Council-owned development company begins work on new sustainable homes