Overview
The Living sectors are growing fast, with the asset classes well on the way to becoming mainstream, and it is projected that they could account for one-third of direct real estate investment globally by 2030.
The Living sector is made up of the build to rent (BTR), student housing, co-living, residential, senior living, affordable housing and hotels asset classes, and there are many synergies between these operational residential asset classes, which has resulted in a growing trend of stakeholders looking to deploy across multiple asset classes.
Gowling WLG has an established, full-service legal team active across all the Living asset classes. Combining technical excellence and market insight across these areas, we help developers, operators, investors and funders, from new entrants to established players targeting this growth opportunity.
Our Living team combines decades of experience working on major residential, mixed use and regeneration projects, a breadth of specialist experience advising operators across the Living sectors and a strong track record supporting stakeholders backing these markets. We provide clients with strategic advice from lawyers specialising in real estate, construction, planning, finance, regulatory, tax, commercial, corporate, pensions and employment matters.
Client work
We are proud to advise clients such as LaSalle Investment Management, Triple Point Social Housing REIT, Legal & General, NFU Mutual, Universities Superannuation Scheme, Sanctuary Group, Audley Group, GCP Student Living plc, St Modwen, The Miller Group and multiple local authorities. Some of our past and current projects include:
SENIOR LIVING
Advising Audley Group on the real estate aspects of a joint venture with Royal London Pension Property Fund to deliver a new retirement village in Buckinghamshire, Audley Wycliffe Park.
BUILD TO RENT
Advising Wise living on acquiring £33 million of funding from ICG-Longbow to buy sites and build homes across five sites in the Midlands and North West.
STUDENT ACCOMMODATION
Advising private equity firm Blackstone on its £4.66 billion acquisition of student accommodation company IQ from Goldman Sachs.
HOTELS
Advising Queensgate Investments on the £1 billion acquisition of four luxury hotels in central London.
RESIDENTIAL
Advising longstanding client Bloor Homes on the acquisition of three golf clubs to build nearly 3,000 new homes.
REGENERATION
A consortium of developers (Taylor Wimpey, Linden homes and Bovis Homes) on the acquisition of 1,200 acres of land near Plymouth for the development of the new town of Sherford.
Legal services for the Living sector
Awards and recognition
We have an award-winning, highly recommended team of lawyers ready to support the Living sector. We were proud that our residential team was commended in the Real Estate Team of the Year category at The Lawyer Awards 2021 for its work advising Thakeham Homes on its plans for a new zero-carbon community in South Cambridgeshire.
The team is consistently ranked in the top tier for real estate in The Legal 500 UK and Chambers and Partners UK rankings, with a number of lawyers named as eminent practitioners and leading individuals.
Contact the team
We're here to help. Get in touch today to talk to a team that can support you throughout each stage of your project, and across all the Living asset classes.
Dominic Morris
Partner
Daniel Leather
Partner