Manchester-based developer, Urban Splash, which posted increased losses of £15.4 million last year, has replaced its current lenders RBS, Co-op, HSBC and Blackstone.
The joint venture will initially fund the Urban Splash Braun portfolio, which consists of 35 properties including; Fort Dunlop in Birmingham, the Matchworks in Liverpool and Smithfield Buildings in Manchester.
Chairman Tom Bloxham said: “This is part of our Urban Splash strategy to refinance our bank debt and form new long-term joint ventures with strong partners.
“It comes following the JV partnership we established last year with Places for People; one of the UK’s biggest landlords.
“This partnership with Pears, a large private property business with huge experience in the UK property market, is the next stage in our plan. We look forward to working with Jonathan Rose, Group MD of Pears, and his team on this and other projects.”
Last year, Urban Splash announced an extensive restructure and the sale of a number of key properties to social housing landlord, Places for People, in a deal worth £77 million.
Mr Bloxham added: “Since 2008, our company, like virtually every other in our sector, has been restricted by its debt burden. It is sad to see how few other northern property development companies have even survived. It has been a tough five years for the industry, but I’m proud that during that time we were able to deliver some great award winning projects.
“We have also been working hard since 2011 to refinance our debt and form new joint venture relationships with strong stable financial partners. This deal with Pears will allow Urban Splash to continue to do what we do best – develop and manage ground breaking and award winning regeneration schemes across the UK; something we’ve done for more than 20 years.”
Jonathan Rose, Group MD of Pears Property, added: “We have been delighted to assist Tom and the Urban Splash team in their refinance. We look forward to working together.”
The Pears Group, which has a partnership with Masthaven Finance, is a family-owned company with a £6 billion property portfolio centred around London and the South East.
In February, it was announced that a new institutional investor would be sought to replace The William Pears Group as the funding backer of bridging lender, Capital A.
Law firm, Eversheds, advised Urban Splash on the recent refinancing deal.
Partner Nigel Dale said: “This is a great deal which will help our client Urban Splash to fulfil its strategic goals as the property market continues to gather pace.”
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