- OakNorth has completed a £20.7m loan to Fortis Group, one of the UK’s fastest growing development companies;
- The finance will be used to develop hundreds of new homes in Manchester – minutes from Salford Central station – as well as two retail units;
- All the units have already been pre-sold to individual buyers;
- Manchester is rated as the top location for property investments in the UK, with property prices expected to increase by almost 23% by 2022 according to JLL.
OakNorth – the bank for entrepreneurs, by entrepreneurs – has completed a double-digit loan to Fortis Group, the property development company which has completed 24 projects across the UK and has a further 8 under construction.
The developer will use the capital to develop Adelphi Wharf on Adelphi Street: a major residential development consisting of 387 homes (61 studios, 152 one-bedroom flats, 146 two-bedroom flats, and 28 three-bedroom flats), and two retail units with GIA of 5,920 sq. ft. The development will be completed in December next year, but all residential units have already been pre-sold – a clear demonstration of the demand for high-quality homes in and around Manchester city centre.
Established in 2012, Fortis’ portfolio spans the whole of the UK – in the past three years alone, it has completed 15 student and residential developments consisting of 1,500 apartments, and currently lets over 1,700 apartments throughout the UK. With circa 1,600 high-end residential apartments currently under construction in Salford, Fortis has excellent knowledge of the Manchester market, choosing locations which are likely to see high rental demand and house price index increases.
Commenting on the deal, Gareth Morgan, Executive Director at Fortis, said: “We have now completed several large-scale residential projects in Manchester with several more currently under construction, so it’s a city we know well and one that is in desperate need of more homes. It is one of Europe’s fastest-growing cities and with the Ordsall Chord and High Speed 2, its popularity will only continue to grow. We’re grateful to the team at OakNorth for their support on the transaction – they had a thorough understanding of the market, no doubt because they’ve now funded several developments in Manchester and worked tirelessly to ensure the deal could be completed in our limited time fram.”
Hemesh Patel, Property Finance Director at OakNorth, commented: “Manchester has established itself as the second most important economic hub in the UK behind London, creating a strong driver of demand for city centre living. Property now sells three times as quickly here than in the capital and demand significantly outstrips supply, as evidenced by the fact that Fortis has already pre-sold almost 400 units more than 12 months before doors will be opening. The team at Fortis have exceptional knowledge of the city and have successfully completed dozens of projects in the past. We were delighted to be chosen as their partner on this transaction and look forward to working with them on future projects.”