Pension Insurance Corporation (PIC) has completed the acquisition of a fully operational build-to-rent development in Reading.

The transaction, which is in excess of £200m, marks the biggest investment for PIC in the living sector.

PIC said the development, named Ebb & Flow, forms part of a wider £850m mixed-use regeneration called Station Hill that includes Grade A offices, leisure and retail uses, delivered by Lincoln MGT, the joint venture between Lincoln Property Company and MGT Investment Management.

Head of real estate origination at PIC, James Agar, said the acquisition aligns with PIC’s build-to-rent investment strategy, which sets out a targeted approach to acquiring “well located, high quality developments”.

“The significant demand for professionally managed rental housing across the UK supports sustainable, inflation linked cashflows which match PIC’s pension liabilities over coming decades,” Agar commented.

“In line with this purpose, Ebb & Flow supports PIC’s long standing strategy of investing in the UK’s structurally undersupplied Living Sector to deliver tangible social value.

“Fully let, best-in-class operational assets represent strong relative value at this point in the market cycle, delivering attractive risk adjusted returns, as we navigate higher interest rates and the persistently tight credit spread environment.”

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