Matter Real Estate welcomes UBS Asset Management as anchor investor in new U.K. SFR housing fund

Matter Real Estate has announced that UBS Asset Management, Real Estate & Private Markets, Multi-Managers business (UBS REPM MM) has agreed to invest in a new fund, Matter UK Residential Income Fund (MUKRIF), seeded by assets from Matter portfolio company Placefirst, which will also continue as a property manager.

With Matter as investment manager and Placefirst as property manager, UBS REPM MM will act as the anchor LP in the vehicle, with an initial commitment of £105 million (€121 million/$131 million). The fund’s initial transaction includes the acquisition of more than 560 stabilized single-family rental (SFR) homes located in five sites across five different U.K. towns, including Liverpool, Leeds and Sheffield. Future acquisitions of stabilised assets from Placefirst, as well as from other developers, are expected in the coming years, with the fund targeting core returns over the long term.

Having identified a chronic structural undersupply of housing in