The case to be made for multi-family and PRS investment are being driven by supply and demand imbalances, and challenges around increasing supply. Other factors involved are populations moving toward cities, stable and long-term assets, and the income streams that spread across multiple occupants. There has been a large quantity of flows toward the sector in 2020 despite an unstable market.
It looks like continued investment activity in Dublin will continue for the right product, and most investors have intricate requirements. International investors want to differentiate their plans from other alternatives in the market and “future proof” them for a moment when there are no more choices for tenants. The leading Irish development in the marketplace is the “Build to rent” design and operational principles. These are highly desired by investors, and it illustrates to them that the property has a good track record and has a high-quality development structure. The design of developments over common areas, ample amenity spaces, and inside apartments are critical to the success of new projects. These projects can be either short term, or long term depending on the details of the project. The elements of all these things form the pieces for the delivery of investors’ platforms in Ireland. Branding is typically added in on some level to the strategy around management and the building of sustainable communities.
In Ireland there has generally been two major strategies to secure multi-family investment assets. You can use forward purchase opportunities from experienced Irish developers or do the strategy that consists of direct land purchase with Irish based development partners. The forward purchase strategy has been more common than forward funding for a range of reasons. It is evident that there will be successful forward funding opportunities announced as the market matures. Forward purchasing is basically a concept where Irish developers sold off plans in the 90s and 2000s for new apartment developments. The exception to this rule is when only one investor is sold to, and not multiple investors.
Most of the time forward purchase is not risky for an investor, but they must wait until a lease ends to earn return on profits. With forward funding, an investor can earn returns through the construction phase, but in doing this they take on development risk. Sources of capital have evolved as the market has developed, these sources include capital seeking with high returns versus long-term capital like pension and wealth funds.
Long term capital has illustrated the maturing aspect of the Irish market, and its positive outlook on investments. With consumers taking a stable approach to Irish investing, it gives way to a future sustainable market.
Written by John Spurrier, Mortgage Analyst at Online Application