For-profit Zen Housing buys 767 affordable homes from house builder

Vistry said the deals bring together the house builder’s “national scale and delivery expertise”, Zen Living Management’s affordable housing operating platform and the “long-term institutional capital and investment strategy” of Tristan Capital Partners’ EPISO 6 Fund.

The house builder added that the organisations “share a clear ambition” to accelerate the delivery of “high-quality, affordable homes”.

Stephen Teagle, chief executive for partnerships and regeneration at Vistry, said: “This agreement is a strong example of how effective partnerships can unlock delivery at scale through investment across multiple sites.

“There is a clear and pressing need for affordable housing across the country, and by working with partners who share our ambition, we can help address the affordable housing crisis and make a meaningful difference in communities nationwide.”

Kristian Smyth, managing director for investments at Tristan Capital Partners, said: “This is a landmark deal with a leading UK provider, underlining the important role that private capital can play in the delivery of critical housing across England at a time when the gulf between demand and supply is most pronounced.

“Working with prominent house builders on a programmatic basis, we are focused on continuing to deliver high-quality, social and affordable homes that support long-term sustainable communities.”

Tom Walsh, co-founder of Zen Living Management, said: “This transaction is a strong validation of our model: a regulated, for-profit operating platform that brings together blue-chip house builders and institutional capital to deliver affordable homes at scale.

“Vistry needed a counterparty with capital, national reach and execution certainty. Zen exists to be that counterparty, working with capital partners such as Tristan to deploy across multiple programmatic relationships in the sector.”

Mr Walsh said in February that Zen Housing expects to commit to around 5,000 homes this year. He added that affordable housing offers “the best risk-adjusted returns I’ve ever found”.

Vistry owns its own for-profit registered provider, Linden First. Last year Inside Housing Living revealed that the FTSE 250-listed developer is looking for an investor to acquire an interest in and fund Linden First.

The chosen partner will take on a majority share or full ownership of Linden First and finance a pipeline of new homes, which would be built by Vistry and owned by the for-profit provider.