Quintain has been put up for sale by its private equity owner, in what would be the largest-ever deal for a private U.K. property company.
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Lone Star has appointed Credit Suisse and Eastdil Secured to market Quintain, with a price tag of £3B, according to the Financial Times.
The sale would be larger than the current record U.K. property deal, the £2.6B take-private of Canary Wharf Group by the Qatar Investment Authority and Brookfield in 2015.
However, there is a larger public market deal in the works — the £3.4B takeover of Intu by fellow shopping centre REIT Hammerson. That deal is scheduled to complete in December but could be derailed if French shopping centre giant Klépierre succeeds in its attempt to buy Hammerson.
Lone Star is looking to make a profit on Quintain, having taken the company private for £1B in 2015, refinanced its debt and started building out its development pipeline.
That pipeline makes it the largest single build-to-rent project in the U.K. Up to 7,000 homes could be built on its Wembley site, with 5,000 earmarked for private rent.
A buyer of the company would have instant scale in the U.K. rental market, seen as a big appeal for global investors who have been pouring billions into the sector.
However, some investors have warned that the prices being paid for U.K. BTR schemes do not reflect the political uncertainty which inherently influences the sector.
Want to see what £3B gets you? Join Bisnow's Build To Rent Annual Conference which will be held at Quintain's Wembley scheme on 22 May.
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