Press releases
MTVH and Legal & General Affordable Homes shared ownership JV will help nearly two thousand families get a foot on the housing ladder
Housing association MTVH via its shared ownership brand So Resi, and Legal & General Affordable Homes (LGAH) have joined forces to create a 50:50 joint venture targeting the delivery of over 2,500 shared ownership and affordable rent homes over the next seven years. Of the 2,500 homes, around 2,000 will be shared ownership with the remainder for affordable rent.
14 Nov 2022
The first homes built under the Joint Venture are expected to be completed by 2025, with construction set to begin on these homes within the next twelve months. All homes will be built to meet or exceed EPC B energy efficiency standards.
The Joint Venture expects to help many more households in London and the South-East to become homeowners.
Around 2,000 of the homes will be sold through shared ownership via MTVH’s SO Resi brand, boosting access to affordable homeownership. This is especially timely, with the current interest rate environment making shared ownership a relatively more attractive housing product. SO Resi is the award-winning shared ownership brand of MTVH – one of the country’s largest housing associations.
The remaining homes will be available for affordable rent. MTVH through SO Resi will bring its experience in marketing and managing shared-ownership homes - MTVH currently, manages or administers around 57,000 homes across London, the South East, East Midlands and East of England.
LGAH was launched in 2018 to increase the supply of affordable housing and now operates over 2,500 homes across the country, with a further 6,500 in its pipeline. Over the last 12 months it has developed and sold nearly 550 shared ownership homes and handed over nearly 1,500 affordable homes.
LGAH’s mission is to significantly increase the supply, sustainability, and quality of affordable homes, aiming to deliver best-in-class customer service. Its aim is for the provision of its services to help reduce inequalities, improve people’s health and well-being, making a positive contribution to the communities it serves.
This forward-thinking Joint Venture merges the financial resources and expertise of Legal & General Affordable Homes with decades of experience in developing, selling and managing quality affordable housing at MTVH.
NB: The image above features the Acer Apartments at White City Living in West London, a current LGAH scheme.
Geeta Nanda, CEO at MTVH and Chair of the G15 group of London’s largest housing associations: "This partnership couldn’t come at a better time, when rising house prices and the cost-of-living crisis mean that affordable routes into homeownership are needed more than ever. Our research tells us that demand for our shared ownership properties exceeds supply in some instances by as much as 10 to 1, so we are delighted at the prospect of being able to expand our provision thanks to this exciting Joint Venture. Ultimately, it will help around 2,000 households to become homeowners, buying a share in their own home. In the current challenging economic environment, this type of opportunity enabling people to build a better future is needed more than ever.It is no secret that there is a chronic shortage of affordable homes in the UK. It is imperative that more such homes are built. Innovative steps such as this partnership between a housing association and a major financial institution are a good way forward. We look forward to working closely with Legal & General Affordable Homes to create comfortable homes as the foundation for people to live better."
Ben Denton, CEO at Legal & General Affordable Homes: "Our vision is for everyone to have a high-quality, well-managed, sustainable and affordable home. Our business model balances the need for investors to see a fair and reliable return on their investment, while injecting much-needed additional capital to grow the affordable housing sector. At the moment, housing associations around the country are managing to create just a third of the new homes that are required to meet current need. By providing additional institutional investment, amounting to £1.15bn since 2018, we can significantly increase the rate at which these homes are built and the number of households helped.Our new partnership with MTVH and its shared ownership brand SO Resi will help us to achieve our goal of creating over 2,000 new affordable homes a year - and ensuring they are superb quality. For example, 96% of our completed homes have EPC ratings of A or B, to help residents combat the soaring costs of energy."
Further information
Notes to editors
Established in 1836, Legal & General is one of the UK's leading financial services groups and a major global investor, with £1.2 trillion in total assets under management1 of which 40% is international. We have a unique and highly synergistic business model, which continues to drive strong returns. Legal & General provides powerful asset origination and management capabilities directly to clients, which also underpin our leading retirement and protection solutions. We are a leading international player in Pension Risk Transfer, in UK and US life insurance, and in UK workplace pensions and retirement income. Our purpose is to improve the lives of our customers and create value for our shareholders. Through inclusive capitalism, we are investing in long-term assets, such as real estate and infrastructure, that can help build a better society for the future.
1Data as at 31 December 2023.
Legal & General Capital (LGC) is Legal & General Group’s alternative asset platform, creating assets for Legal & General Retirement and third-party clients in order to achieve improved risk-adjusted returns for our shareholders. LGC has built its capabilities in a range of alternative sectors, including in residential property; specialist commercial real estate; clean energy; alternative credit; and venture capital, which are all supported by long-term structural growth drivers, meet a financing gap, and respond to a scarcity of supply that is underpinned by enduring societal needs.