Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan and Hines acquire Build-to-Rent portfolio in Australia

Transaction provides geographic diversification and exposure to a key and growing market for multi-family assets

AUSTRALIA – October 1, 2024 – Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan (“Ontario Teachers’”) and Hines, a leading global real estate investment manager, have completed the acquisition of two Build-to-Rent (“BTR”) assets in Brisbane totaling 354 units.

The acquisition aligns with Ontario Teachers’ Real Estate’s Living strategy in Australia, which targets amenity-rich assets in vibrant submarkets close to transportation links, employment hubs, and entertainment centers. The assets comprise:

• 28 Robertson Street located in Fortitude Valley (“Robertson”): Robertson is an operational 89-unit BTR asset. The building was completed in October 2021 and stabilised within 6 months of operations. Robertson’s ESG features include the usage of renewable energy, storm water recycling, high-performance acoustic glazing and low-energy LEDs.
• 13-17 Cordelia Street in South Brisbane (“Cordelia”): Cordelia is a 265-unit premier BTR asset that is expected to reach practical completion in Q1 2025. Cordelia will deliver top-of-the-line amenities such as a gym, rooftop pool, residents lounge, co-working space, private dining room, and a sky garden. Cordelia will target a 5-star Greenstar rating and a 7.0 Energy Performance Rating under the Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme (NatHERS).

Jun Ando, Head of Asia-Pacific Real Estate at Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, said: “With the Australian population expected to see continued growth and consumer preferences in the country moving more towards the rental sector, we see strong, long-term potential in the Australian multi-family market. These assets provide us with a strategic entry point into Brisbane and, working alongside Hines and Arklife, we will look to offer a compelling value proposition for tenants and create value for our stakeholders through active asset management.”

David Warneford, Country Head of Australia and New Zealand at Hines added: “These acquisitions reflect our continued focus on actively pursuing Build-to-Rent opportunities in Brisbane, as well as in other key Australian cities with strong fundamentals. Hines sees tremendous potential in Australian BTR for both investors and residents. It’s poised to offer stable cash flow and income growth while helping to meet the demand for quality rental housing in the country.”

Ontario Teachers’ Real Estate believes that the multi-family and broader living sector benefit from strong macroeconomic tailwinds and favorable demand-supply dynamics. Accordingly, Ontario Teachers’ has invested alongside like-minded local partners in living sector assets across the U.S., UK, and Australia.

The vendor is the ADCO Group, one of Australia’s leading private construction and property groups. The projects were managed on behalf of ADCO by Arklife – a specialised BTR platform which is also co-owned by ADCO.

Hines will provide asset management services and Arklife will continue to be the property manager for Robertson and Cordelia.

About Ontario Teachers’

Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan Board (Ontario Teachers') is a global investor with net assets of $255.8 billion as at June 30, 2024. We invest in more than 50 countries in a broad array of assets including public and private equities, fixed income, credit, commodities, natural resources, infrastructure, real estate and venture growth to deliver retirement income for 340,000 working members and pensioners. 

Our more than 450 investment professionals operate in key financial centres around the world and bring deep expertise in a broad range of sectors and industries. We are a fully funded defined benefit pension plan and have earned an annual total-fund net return of 9.3% since the plan's founding in 1990. At Ontario Teachers', we don't just invest to make a return, we invest to shape a better future for the teachers we serve, the businesses we back, and the world we live in. For more information, visit otpp.com and follow us on LinkedIn. 

About Hines

Hines is a leading global real estate investment manager. We own and operate $93 billion[1] of assets across property types and on behalf of a diverse group of institutional and private wealth clients. Every day, our 5,000 employees in 31 countries draw on our 67-year history to build the world forward by investing in, developing, and managing some of the world’s best real estate. To learn more, visit www.hines.com and follow @Hines on social media.

About ADCO

ADCO is a leading private Australian construction and property group with an award-winning portfolio of almost 4,000 successfully completed projects. The Group was established in 1972 and operates nationally. ADCO has a team in excess of 650 people delivering annual revenues of around $1.5 billion and remains proudly family owned.  Please see our website and LinkedIn for further details.

About Arklife

Arklife is a specialist Build to Rent group, providing Development, Property and Investment Management Services within the Build to Rent Sector. Arklife is a recognised leader in the Australian BTR market and is currently involved in four projects totalling in excess of 1500 apartments.