John Street scheme would follow recent Copper Works scheme in Welsh capital

Grainger has acquired a site in Cardiff which it believes could accommodate around 400 new built-to-rent homes.

Investment includes a £6.25m site at John Street, which includes the long leasehold of five railway arches.

Grainger Guildfod

Grainger’s ‘The Mint’ scheme in Guildford

The former site currently has planning permission for office space and a hotel and Grainger is now attempting to gain consent for a BTR-led scheme.

Britain’s largest listed residential landlord says its proposed scheme would include the creation of around 400 homes and resident amenities, while “re-activating” the railway arches with commercial uses and publicly accessible open space.

As well as the John Street site, Grainger has invested £2m in a multi-storey car park in Capital Quarter the city, which it plans to lease to John Street residents as well as those living in the firm’s existing scheme at Copper Works.

Grainger has 11,069 operational rental homes across the UK and a further 4,730 in its pipeline.

Helen Gordon, chief executive officer of Grainger, said: “We are pleased to further invest in Cardiff, which is a key investment target for Grainger.

“The acquisition of these sites follows the successful launch of our Copper Works scheme earlier this year and provides an opportunity to potentially deliver a further c.400 homes in the Welsh Capital, taking our Cardiff portfolio to c.707 high quality rental homes.”

Last week, Grainger reported turnover of £290m in the year to 30 September, up from £267.1m the previous year.

The group’s net rental income increased 14% from £96.5m to £110.1m over the same period, driven by “strong delivery of pipeline scheme launches” and rental growth.

The group’s pre-tax profit increased from £27.4m to £40.6m.