Leading diversified professional services and investment management company Colliers has welcomed Paddy Allen to its National Capital Markets team as Head of Operational Capital Markets. The focus of the new role will be on the alternatives, student housing and operational hotels sectors.
Paddy, who joins from Cushman & Wakefield, comments: “The conversations amongst investors have changed over the last 12 months as the market responds to COIVD-19 and long-term investment recovery plays are now looking more attractive than ever. There is substantial and growing appetite for sectors such as build to rent, hotels and student housing where a strong bounce back is expected and there is significant asset management potential.
“A weight of capital is looking to build a presence in operational real estate, with particular appetite for various residential bed sectors such as build to rent and student accommodation. As more institutional capital looks to enter the sector, we can now provide an outstanding service for clients from the start to finish of a real estate platform’s lifecycle, helping increase capital exposure and deliver growth.
“In operational real estate, understanding how platforms work to deliver value, by identifying key customer groups and getting the right product market fit, is just as important as the physical real estate involved.”
According to Colliers’ predictions, investment into UK real estate should reach £60 billion in 2021 as confidence returns and UK institutions and overseas investors increase activity. Recovery will predominantly be driven by appetite for long term, defensive assets. This will be mirrored in the debt markets with asset classes including build to rent and student housing being among the most popular opportunities this year.