Gresham House acquires shared ownership homes from Ocean Housing

Gresham House has acquired 469 shared ownership homes in Cornwall for £46mn from Ocean Housing

The homes – 438 houses and 31 apartments – have been developed by Ocean Housing across Cornwall.

The acquisition was made within a Gresham House Limited Partnership, via ReSI Homes, our wholly owned registered provider of social housing.

As part of the transaction, ReSI Homes has entered into a 20-year management agreement with Ocean, providing continuity of service for residents. It is our first major acquisition in Cornwall and first transaction with Ocean Housing, which owns around 4,800 homes.

The transaction has received strong support from key stakeholders such as Cornwall Council, which acknowledges the significant capacity this unlocks for Ocean to deliver new affordable housing whilst continuing to invest in the quality of its existing homes.

Cornwall faces an affordable housing crisis due to both limited supply of new housing and a high house price to earnings ratio of 11x, compared with the national average of 7x.

The transaction marks an important milestone, as another in a long list of transactions with a number of major housing associations such as Orbit, Metropolitan Thames Valley and Swan Housing. We recently also funded 351 new affordable homes across Somerset, Wiltshire, Kent and Suffolk.

Gresham House has now invested in over 2,100 shared ownership homes through Limited Partnerships and our listed vehicle, Residential Secure Income plc (LSE: RESI).
 

Ben Fry, Managing Director of Housing at Gresham House says:

“This deal is a great result for all stakeholders and will deliver substantial social benefits for Cornwall, unlocking considerable capacity for Ocean Housing to deliver further affordable housing in an area where it is sorely needed.

“We’re delighted to have entered a long-term partnership with Ocean Housing in Cornwall having established a strong working relationship during 2022. This continues our long-running track record of successfully partnering with sector leaders across the country to support the provision of affordable housing where it is needed most.”
 

Mark Gardner, Group Chief Executive at Ocean Housing, adds:

“This transaction will play a vital role in supporting our plans to build 1,000 new homes in Cornwall by 2030 and invest in improving energy efficiency and reducing emissions in our existing tenants’ homes. Gresham House has an outstanding reputation for its work with housing associations, and we are delighted to partner with the company on this significant transaction that will support local communities across Cornwall for years to come.”
 

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