Gresham House enters shared ownership partnership with Places for People subsidiary

Gresham House has entered a partnership with a subsidiary of Places for People (PfP) to create a new affordable housing fund management platform for shared ownership.

The agreement will see the asset manager and PfP’s “socially conscious” fund manager, Thriving Investments, take over Gresham House Residential Secure Income LP (ReSI LP) as a partnership.

The combined offering will include an expanded investment team of 24 staff.

Ben Fry, formerly fund manager for ReSI LP and ReSI PLC, has been appointed to the newly created role of affordable housing fund director at Thriving Investments.

In his new role, he will continue to advise ReSI LP, while supporting Thriving Investments’ wider goals.

Fry will also continue as managing director of Gresham House’s two for-profit registered providers of social housing.

ReSI PLC announced its intention to adopt a managed wind-down and portfolio realisation strategy last month, which will result in the sale of its subsidiary ReSI Housing, one of the two for-profits.

The other, ReSI Homes, was unaffected as it falls under the ReSI LP entity.

>> Read more: For-profit ReSI Housing to be sold as parent firm announces plan to wind down

Ben Fry said: “Delivering meaningful social impact investment opportunities for investors in the housing sector has underpinned much of my career and fully aligns with Thriving Investments’ strategy. 

“I look forward to leveraging my experience at Gresham House and that of the Thriving Investments team to accelerate the Fund’s growth, whilst delivering value for clients within what is arguably the sector’s only vertically integrated, social impact fund management platform.”

To date, the fund has deployed nearly £200m in capital and amassed a portfolio of 1,557 affordable homes. It has a target to build a £1bn-plus shared ownership portfolio in the next five years.

Under the new partnership, Gresham will continue to provide regulatory functions, oversight, finance and reporting, client servicing and fundraising functions for the fund. 

Meanwhile, Thriving Investments will be responsible for managing the portfolio and sourcing and executing new acquisitions.

There are no proposed changes to ReSI Homes, or the membership of its board.