Broadstone Housing Investments, an entity in Ireland operated by Australian financial services giant Macquarie, has sold its social housing portfolio at a loss.
It is believed that Broadstone is now on the block. Its authorisation to provide mortgage-to-rent solutions is likely to appeal to some property market participants.
A spokesman for Macquarie declined to comment.
Broadstone was set up in Dublin four years ago by Macquarie to buy homes holding long-term leases with local authorities, approved housing bodies and other State-backed organisations.
It initially secured €100 million of debt facilities from the European branch of Japan’s Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation and Italian lender Sanpaulo Bank’s Irish branch and bought a number of properties in Carlow, Athlone, Co Westmeath, and Belmullet, Co Mayo.
However, it said in its financial statement for the year to March 2023 that “the pace of acquisitions has been slower than originally anticipated”.
Broadstone disclosed in its latest annual financial statement, filed with the Companies Registration Office this week, that it had agreed to sell its subscale portfolio, which had been worth €5.5 million, for a knockdown price. It booked a €1.62 million impairment charge against the properties to reflect the sale price, suggesting it achieved €3.88 million.
Broadstone was also selected by the Government early last year – along with two other private-sector groups and two approved housing bodies – to offer mortgage-to-rent (MTR) solutions for lenders and borrowers dealing with loans that have no prospect of being repaid.
Broadstone was working on 19 MTR cases at the end of the first quarter, according to the latest data on the Housing Agency’s website.
It is understood that Macquarie remains interested in the Irish social housing sector, but plans to focus on public private partnership (PPP).
The financial group was involved in Ireland’s first PPP for social housing construction, with the deal, signed in 2019, covering 535 homes in Dublin, Louth, Wicklow and Kildare. Other members of the PPP consortium included Bank of Ireland, the European Investment Bank and the Korea Development Bank.
