Australia’s leading independent law firm, Corrs Chambers Westgarth, has advised Novus on the establishment of its BTR platform and its Novus Build to Rent Trust (NBT) with capital partner M&G Real Estate.
Established last year, Novus is a vertically integrated asset manager focused on providing purpose designed and built rental accommodation across Australia. The platform has reached financial close for its first investment vehicle, the NBT, with a A$450 million investment from the M&G Asia Property Fund this week. NBT will develop a portfolio of multi-family properties in some of Australia’s key cities with a focus on Melbourne and Sydney.
The matter has been led by partners Paul Carrick, Fadi Khoury, Rhys Lloyd Morgan and Lizzie Knight, supported by special counsel Jaclyn Riley-Smith, senior associate Maarten De Schepper and other Corrs’ team members. Corrs advised Novus on all aspects of the joint venture, fund formation and fund raising, drawing on the combined expertise of Corrs’ Financial Sponsors and Real Estate teams.
Partner Paul Carrick said: “Build-to-rent is heating up and there is a weight of international capital looking to enter the Australian market – demonstrated by M&G Real Estate’s investment into NBT.
“Knowing Adam and Jason for over a decade, it has been incredibly exciting to see their vision come to life with such an experienced global partner. We look forward to helping the Novus and NBT teams deliver on their mission of creating homes for 10,000 people.”
Commenting on the matter, partner Fadi Khoury said: “We are pleased to support Novus on the establishment of their venture with Aliro Group and the investment by M&G Real Estate, leveraging the combined expertise of the Corrs team.”
Co-Founder & CEO at Novus Adam Hirst said: “As a local specialist, we have a clear vision and value proposition for multi-family in Australia and are proud to partner with M&G Real Estate – an experienced global investor in the sector. Together, we are well positioned to execute on our compelling pipeline of opportunities, adding to an excellent seed asset already in place.”