Moda refinances Liverpool BTR in £70m deal

Deutsche Bank has provided the developer with a new investment loan for The Lexington, a 325-apartment scheme at Peel L&P’s Liverpool Waters. 

The £70m facility – secured by real estate investment managers Apache Capital and Harrison Street and insurer NFU Mutual – will refinance the legacy development loan.

Contractor BCEGI completed work on Moda Living’s £115m Liverpool development in August 2021. 

“The Lexington has outperformed the Liverpool market and is now reaching stabilisation within just one year of opening,” said Johnny Caddick, chief executive of Moda Living. 

“Its continued performance is testament to the brand, the support of our investment partners and the highly provisioned rental experience we deliver across our living sector platforms.” 

The Lexington was the first operational development in Apache Capital, Harrison Street and NFU Mutual’s joint venture, which launched in 2018 to fund the delivery of Moda’s build-to-rent BTR portfolio in core cities across the UK. 

Other schemes within the joint venture’s multifamily portfolio with Moda include The Mercian in Birmingham, funded by Goldman Sachs, and New York Square in Leeds,  

“The fact we were able to complete this transaction despite the challenging market conditions reflects both the quality of the product delivered by Moda and the enduring appeal of residential for rent as an asset class,” said John Dunkerley, co-founder and chief executive at Apache Capital. 

“We firmly believe our model with Moda will prove resilient, with both existing and prospective customers coming to appreciate the benefits of living in a professionally managed modern apartment building that is more energy efficient than a home in the traditional private rented sector.”