The build to rent (BTR) industry is growing quickly and as the membership organisation for the BTR sector in the UK, the UK Apartment Association (UKAA) must mirror this evolution with greater investment into:
- Knowledge creation & distribution
- Attracting & retaining members
- Increasing visibility & strategic influence
- Strong leadership
- Mutually beneficial partnerships
To achieve this, we must further strengthen the UKAA team, and this is already underway. We also recognise the generous and highly valuable contribution which has been made by our membership to date and call for this to not only continue but increase to further support our growth.
As outlined in the 2022 AGM, the UKAA is embarking upon a clear strategy for growth and delivery. This manifesto is the first step on the journey.
UK Build to Rent: The Investment Opportunity
Up to Q3 2022, £30bn has been invested into the UK BTR sector – 76,800 completed homes and a further 163,400 in the planning and delivery pipeline. The number of completed BTR homes could increase five-fold to reach 380,000 by 2032 with the industry set to be worth £170bn according to the British Property Federation (BPF) and Savills (Source: BPF/Savills BTR market update October 2022).
Knight Frank research supports this forecast, estimating investment in BTR to grow to £102bn by 2028 (Source: Knight Frank Multi Housing 2022/23 Report).
Source: BPF/Savills October 2022
UK Build to Rent Industry Values
BTR is based upon the provision of high-quality homes, purpose-built for private rental. Key values of BTR homes include:
- Professionally managed
- Customer centric
- Deliver economic, environmental, and social value
- Backed by long-term patient capital
- Offer a valued living experience through community-building, design quality, secure tenures, safe places, customer service & on-site amenities.
The UK Apartment Association (UKAA)
The UKAA has established itself as the leading presence within the rapidly growing UK BTR industry, with a membership covering a broad range of organisations, from investors through to suppliers. Membership currently stands at 320 organisations reaching 3,500 professionals operating in BTR and beyond.
The UKAA’s 2023 Corporate Aims
We have outlined the following aims for 2023:
- Establish recognition within the sector of BTR as a valuable, growing residential sector, meeting housing need with professionally managed, high-quality homes.
- Establish BTR as an industry that is:
- Attractive to invest in
- Attractive to work in
- Attractive as a solution to meet housing demand
- Attractive to customers to live in – whatever their life stage
- Advance ESG literacy by creating environmental, economic, and social value
- Be recognised as the body representing BTR in the UK recognised by government (in conjunction with the BPF), media, the property industry, and the public:
- Through the strength of knowledge and expertise across its membership
- Providing insight into future policy requirements
- Sharing best practice and knowledge
- Raising standards in BTR
The UKAA’s longer-term aim is to be a recognised as an influential, sector specific institution, that promotes all facets of BTR. We want to be relevant to our diverse membership, to wider BTR stakeholders and to society.
We strive to become a strong voice for urban (multifamily) and suburban (single family) BTR in the UK, collaborating with stakeholders across related residential tenures including, but not limited to, buy-to-let, co-living, PBSA, affordable and social housing and the hotel and serviced apartment sectors, working together with industry and partner bodies.
The UKAA’s 2023 Corporate Objectives
The UKAA will focus on the following key areas, with the work of the UKAA Committees and Regional Hub Committees geared to supporting these objectives:
- Create a credible knowledge, data and research platform to underpin a code of practice and advance the journey towards institutional status
- Deliver up to the minute information and guidance on issues that impact investment in and operation of BTR
- Seek out-of-sector input and influence to challenge our growth and learning
- Deliver investment, environmental and social value
- Recognise the value of BTR to the housing sector, allied industries, and supply chains
- Remove the barriers to BTR development
- Advance & grow the delivery of high-quality homes
- Extoll the benefits of BTR to customers, government, media & the property industry
- Recognise and promote high standards of operation & customer experience
- Establish clear career paths, qualifications & training opportunities to attract and retain talent
Working Together
The UKAA was created by the members for the members – tasked with facilitating and delivering the programmes identified by members. Committees and Hubs are the arenas for member expertise to be brought together to assimilate and disseminate knowledge, data, and research. The UKAA’s Committees and Hubs are responsible for driving forward and informing the agenda for the UKAA and the delivery of its aims and objectives.
In 2023, the UKAA will review existing Committees and create new ones to help deliver our objectives. All Committees and Hubs will be invited to create their own manifesto in line the UKAA’s aims and objectives, set out above, and work with UKAA staff and associates to deliver against that programme. This may include events, research, collaboration, knowledge creation and distribution. It will also include submitting progress reports, via the CEO, to the UKAA Executive Board. Report content details and frequency, along with Committee and Hub terms of reference, will shortly be confirmed.
UKAA Manifesto 2023: A Strategy for Growth
For more information on the UKAA Manifesto 2023, please contact us here.