Stock Rationalisation Services in High Demand at FFT

5 October 2020

At Faithorn Farrell Timms, we have become widely recognised as one of the leading specialist providers of stock rationalisation consultancy services in the UK.

Since 2011, our expertise has been called upon to evaluate, prepare for market and provide bidding advice on almost £1.5 billion worth of stock, comprising over 25,000 properties.

In the period 2019-2020 alone, we have managed 11 transactions for 7 organisations, comprising over 2,100 homes with a transaction value of more than £178 million.

Recent stock rationalisation success stories

Our dedicated stock rationalisation team is retained by a number of housing providers and residential landlords nationwide, continuing to deliver on some of the most significant and innovative projects ever undertaken.

  • In November 2019, we completed on the successful transfer of 68 properties from Heyford Regeneration to Paradigm Housing Group, following a comprehensive bid support, consultancy and full project management programme implemented and co-ordinated by our team. Despite the challenge of a highly competitive market that had just opened up to for-profit organisations and institutional investors, using our exclusive Stock Rationalisation Acquisition Toolkit, we were able to secure the deal and complete within the required deadline.

  • Also in 2019, housing association The Hyde Group tasked us with the challenge of completing the sale of a portfolio of 900 social housing properties, all within a very tight deadline, and with a geographical spread requiring multiple transactions. Adopting an innovative approach, we were able to identify three purchasers through a highly competitive marketing process so that the sales were completed within the required timescale, also exceeding financial targets.

  • Recently we were also commissioned by West Kent Housing Association to deliver a Strategic Growth Opportunities Review. This identified the potential acquisition of tenanted stock owned by housing association Stonewater Ltd. Despite the challenge posed by convincing Stonewater of the benefits of disposing of its stock, we were able to see the transaction through to its successful conclusion, securing the right kind of growth for our client, whilst at the same time providing an improved local service offering to residents.

  • As stock rationalisation consultants and project managers for Southern Housing Group, we were appointed to manage every aspect of the transfer of 731 social housing and leasehold properties spread across Wiltshire, Swindon and Berkshire. The challenge was to complete the transaction within just 10 months. A challenge we accepted and successfully finalised on time, despite dealing with an incredibly varied and complex portfolio involving a considerable number of third party legal consents.

According to Stuart May, FFT’s head of housing consultancy, 2020/2021 looks set to be another busy year for this area of the business, with transactions expected to exceed the previous year in scale. Our recently released stock rationalisation flyer details our full range of disposal, acquisition and swap and advisory services.

For more information on our stock rationalisation services, or advice on buying, selling, or identifying opportunities, contact Stuart May, Head of Housing Consultancy – E: [email protected] T: 07815 960390.