IslamicFinance.de

London-based Gatehouse Bank plans to build 6,600 rental homes and gain from the shortage in decent housing stock. The bank hopes to gain from the big shift in the country’s housing market away from buying to renting. Gatehouse has formed a joint venture with the property developer Sigma Capital to leap into the sector. Initially they will build 2,000 new homes in Liverpool and Salford at a cost of about £200m before going on, if the venture proves a success, to build a further 4,600 properties with a further £500m investment. If successful, it would overtake Britain’s biggest stock market-quoted landlord, Grainger Trust, which has currently got 4,000 homes. Gatehouse already has a £1bn property portfolio across the UK and US.