Australian Retirement Trust (ART), one of Australia’s largest superannuation funds, has partnered with institutional investment manager QIC to finance new social and affordable housing supply in Queensland.
Working in conjunction with experienced community housing provider, Brisbane Housing Company (BHC), this innovative investment partnership provides a scalable model for the financing, development and operation of social and affordable housing in the state.
Up to 1,200 new homes are to be delivered through the partnership, largely consisting of social and affordable housing, with construction to commence on all projects by 2025.
Via the partnership with QIC, ART is making capital available alongside the Queensland Government to enable delivery of seven projects in the initial stage by the QIC-BHC Social Housing Consortium , representing nearly 600 dwellings.
The first two projects to commence will be located in Sutton St, Redcliffe and Ethel Street, Chermside, with residents able to move in during 2024. The remaining South-East Queensland sites will be announced once they are secured.
Australian Retirement Trust’s Head of Sustainable Investment, Nicole Bradford, said the deal is the super fund’s first social issue-focused investment since the merger between Sunsuper and QSuper earlier this year.
“Australian Retirement Trust is proud to be involved in such an important investment to help develop more social and affordable housing across Queensland,” said Ms Bradford.
“As one of Australia’s largest superannuation funds, we’re committed to helping solve problems for our community and society, while not compromising on our fiduciary duty to our members, and this project is one example of that.
“We believe this investment opportunity will support more affordable housing in Queensland, while also maximising the real, long-term investment returns for our more than two million members.”
Subject to agreement of terms and finalisation of diligence and documentation, Australian Retirement Trust intend to invest up to $150 million for a subordinated debt tranche, with QIC as investment manager.
Managing Director of QIC Real Estate, Michael O’Brien said, “QIC is proud to be involved in an industry-driven, human-centred response to Queensland’s current housing issues”.
“This unique partnership between Australian Retirement Trust, the Queensland Government and QIC, together with Brisbane Housing Company, has created a significant opportunity for institutional investment into social and affordable housing in Queensland,” Mr O’Brien said.
BHC Chief Executive Officer, Rebecca Oelkers, said, “This program is an exemplar of how state governments and institutional investors can work together with the community housing sector to raise capital and deliver social and affordable housing at scale.”
“It will change the lives of countless Queenslanders who are in dire housing need,” Ms Oelkers said.
More Information
Australian Retirement Trust is the super fund formed through the merger of Sunsuper and QSuper on 28 February 2022.
We are one of Australia's largest super funds, proud to take care of over $200 billion in retirement savings for more than two million members.
As a fund that works for members, not shareholders, we work in members' best interests and commit to returning profits to them as lower fees and better services.
QIC is a long-term specialist manager in alternatives offering infrastructure, real estate, private capital, private debt strategies and multi-asset investments.
It is one of the largest institutional investment managers in Australia, with A$98bn (US$67bn) in funds under management (as at 30 June 2022).
QIC has over 800 employees and serves more than 130 clients. Headquartered in Brisbane, Australia, QIC also has offices in Sydney, Melbourne, New York, San Francisco, and London.
Brisbane Housing Company (BHC) was established in 2022 and is a charity and one of Australia’s largest community housing providers. BHC is a developer, owner and operator of modern, secure and affordable homes for Queenslanders in housing need.
Since inception, BHC has delivered approximately 1,800 homes across over 40 developments, with over 7,500 households assisted to-date.
QIC Limited ACN 130 539 123 (“QIC”) is a wholesale funds manager and its products and services are not directly available to, and this document may not be provided to any, retail clients. QIC is a company government owned corporation constituted under the Queensland Investment Corporation Act 1991 (QLD). QIC is also regulated by State Government legislation pertaining to government owned corporations in addition to the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) (“Corporations Act”). QIC does not hold an Australian financial services (“AFS”) licence and certain provisions (including the financial product disclosure provisions) of the Corporations Act do not apply to QIC. Other wholly owned subsidiaries of QIC do hold AFS licences and are required to comply with relevant provisions of the Corporations Act. QIC also has wholly owned subsidiaries authorised, registered or licensed by the United Kingdom Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”), the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and the Korean Financial Services Commission. For more information about QIC, our approach, clients and regulatory framework, please refer to our website www.qic.com or contact us directly.
QIC, our approach, clients and regulatory framework, please refer to our website www.qic.com or contact us directly.
The statements and any opinions in this document (the “Information”) are for commentary purposes only and do not take into account any investor’s personal, financial or tax objectives, situation or needs. The Information is not intended to constitute personal legal or investment advice and it does not constitute, and should not be construed as, an offer to sell or solicitation of an offer to buy, securities or any other investment, investment management or advisory services.