"REFI Europe Webinar: Residential Property"

Many investors have taken the view that residential property will be more resilient to the impact of the Covid-19 outbreak than other asset classes, and the sector has continued to be relatively busy, with a number of large deals being completed in recent weeks, Xavier Jongen, managing director at Catella Residential Investment Management (CRIM), told a webinar hosted by REFI Europe last week. CRIM has itself been raising capital, he noted, adding that investor appetite for residential assets remains strong. “We’ve raised a little more than €300 million in the last four weeks and inflows precisely matched our expected pipeline, despite the current crisis.”

Affordable housing was already a big topic before the outbreak of the coronavirus crisis and Jongen believes that focus will intensify as a result of the pandemic which has put the spotlight on the needs of nurses, police, public transport employees and other low-income front-line workers. But although residential is being seen as a safe haven, it is not all plain sailing for the sector, he added, pointing out that the distribution channel of the crisis affects residential cash flows. “The pandemic will prompt a re-evaluation of approaches to affordability and sustainability, but also to co-living,” he concluded.