By Mario Marroquin
Cadillac Fairview, the real estate arm of the $242.5 billion
Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, and real estate firm Hines penned an AU$1.5 billion
(US$961 million) built-to-rent partnership this week. Cadillac Fairview said
the partnership will aim to develop, own and operate build-to-rent assets in
Australia across “submarkets close to transportation, employment hubs, diverse
retail offerings and entertainment centers” and that three sites in South
Melbourne have been secured.
Two sites located at 15-33 and 35-37 Bank Street in South
Melbourne will accommodate as many as 400 build-to-rent units within walking
distance to the Royal Botanical Garden and South Melbourne Market, Hines said.
“This investment aligns with our strategic objective of
expanding our investment portfolio in Asia by forming partnerships with
best-in-class operators and developers in attractive asset classes, such as
residential, office and logistics,” Karl Kreppner, senior vice president of
Investments for Asia Pacific at Cadillac Fairview, said in a statement. “It
also complements our global residential portfolio, which includes large active
pipelines across the U.S., Europe and Canada.”
According to Reuters, the build-to-rent scheme will be the
Cadillac Fairview’s first investment in Australia and comes after institutional
investors like Mirvac Group and Macquarie Group began investing in the sector.
However, the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan has been actively investing in
infrastructure and insurance in Oceania since 2021.
Bloomberg reported in September that Ontario Teachers plans
to double its staff in Singapore as other Canadian pension plans including
OMERS and Caisse de Dépôt et Placement du Québec (CDPQ) also aim to increase
their exposure to Asia Pacific.
Meanwhile, Hines recently launched a multifamily joint venture in Brazil with Ivanhoe Cambridge – CDPQ’s real estate arm – and has been actively growing its presence in Melbourne across office and multifamily. The real estate investor wants to develop a $1 billion office tower at 600 Collins Street at the heart of Melbourne and less than 1.5 miles north of two seed sites on Bank Street. According to the Australia Financial Review, the project was approved by the Victorian government in October.
Photo credit: Mitchell Luo/ Pexels.
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