Glasgow’s first major Build to Rent development completes construction

Glasgow’s first major city Build-to-Rent (BTR) housing development has been successfully delivered following a multi-million-pound redevelopment.

This development comes with the introduction of the Merchant City scheme, with the BTR concept – which is well-established in England and Europe – proving hugely popular in the Glasgow market.

The property investment, letting and management specialist, Tay Letting, has successfully let the entire 36-apartment complex after just six weeks of marketing. The fully-let housing development now has a gross development value (GDV) north of £10 million.

Candleriggs Court is located within a discreet courtyard in Glasgow’s G1 postcode, and has proven particularly attractive to young professionalss due to Merchant City’s desirable bars, restaurants and outlets. The revival of city centre living is being driven by this 24-34 age bracket, who accounted for 60% of Candleriggs Court’s letting deals.

Work completed on the city’s newest urban community at the end of June. The first tenants moved in on May 17 and the secluded community environment is set to be fully occupied by the end of July.

Marc Taylor, director of Tay Letting, commented: “Candleriggs Court offers affordable accommodation in the heart of the Merchant City, while delivering a secluded community just minutes’ walk from the best bars and restaurants the city has to offer.”

“This really resonate with potential tenants, and unprecedented demand allowed us to fully-let the development in a matter of weeks.”

Taylor said BTR developments will ‘play an increasingly important role in Glasgow in the coming years’.

Candleriggs Court has been designed with the needs of modern buyers in mind. The mix of one, two and three-bedroom apartments come with a high-specification finish, including German-engineered kitchens from Hackerand Porcelanosa tiling in the bathrooms.

The development also boasts bike spaces, private underground residents’ parking and a unique communal garden, offering breathing space in the heart of the city.

The duo behind the development – Kelvin Properties, one of Glasgow’s largest private investment companies, and Tay Letting – have set their sights on providing more quality BTR units to meet higher levels of demand for city living, particularly among millennials.

Plans are now progressing to deliver another city centre site next year. Build to Rent is proving to be crucial in sustaining the city’s accommodation needs, with research from Savills predicting house prices to rise by 17% by 2022.

Stephen McKechnie, managing director of Kelvin Properties, added: “We want to help Glasgow flourish and thrive by creating quality housing in prime locations that really enhance the urban fabric of the city and attract the very best talent to the city.”

“Following the success at Candleriggs Court, we now plan to deliver more market-leading BTR developments across Glasgow.”