This article is from the Australian Property Journal archive
Lend Lease Corporation has raised $120 million for its Lend Lease Communities Fund 1, Australia’s first wholesale communities fund.
Communities Fund 1 will use a combination of debt and equity to invest in portfolio worth $200 million.
The portfolio includes three master-planned community developments managed by Delfin Lend Lease – at Ropes Crossing in New South Wales, Lakeside in Victoria and Woodlands in South East Queensland.
Lend Lease has taken a 20% co-investment in the fund, with the remaining equity coming from Lend Lease Investment Management’s existing wholesale investor base.
Lend Lease’s global chief executive of investment management Steve McCann said the creation of the fund allows wholesale investors to partner and leverage Delfin Lend Lease’s leading brand and track record in delivering quality large scale master-planned communities.
“At the same time the Communities Fund 1 provides Delfin Lend Lease an opportunity to improve its capital efficiency, while maintaining an on-going exposure to the future development earnings from the projects,” he added.
Delfin Lend Lease will continue to provide development management, project management and marketing and sales services on each of the projects.
McCann said the new Communities Fund 1 will be the first in a series of funds that will invest in master-planned community developments created by Delfin Lend Lease.
“The launch of the Core Plus Fund and Communities Fund 1 clearly demonstrates the competitive advantage enjoyed by Lend Lease Investment Management via the wider Group’s asset creation and end-to-end property skill base. Both new Funds offer investors the opportunity to gain exposure to quality product created by or sourced from within Lend Lease,” he concluded.
The fund will operate in the “value-add” segment of the risk/return spectrum targeting a minimum return of 15% per annum.
The expected life of the fund is six years.
The launch of Communities Fund 1 follows up on Lend Lease’s launch of the $330 million Lend Lease Core Plus Fund, which raised $205 million in equity two week ago.
Lend Lease investment management now has a portfolio of discrete wholesale property funds in Australia, including the three Australian Prime Property Fund vehicles – Retail, Commercial and Industrial; Lend Lease Real Estate Partners 1 & 2; Lend Lease Core Plus Fund and Communities Fund 1.
By Nelson Yap
