Housing association bags £50m funding deal

An East Midlands housing association which has raised £200m on capital markets over the last three years has agreed a £50m funding deal to help it expand into new regions.

EMH Group, which has secured the revolving credit facility from Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking, is one of the largest providers of affordable homes, care and support services in the East Midlands. The funding will support its drive to build 350 new homes a year.

The group was established in 1946 and has around 18,000 properties in more than 40 local authority areas across the East Midlands.

It is predicted that private rents in East Midlands will grow by 45% over the next four years, increasing demand for affordable housing.

The £50m revolving credit facility follows EMH’s £50m bond placement, completed in December 2015, which was arranged by Lloyds Bank.

Chan Kataria, EMH Group chief executive said: “Lloyds Bank has provided support to us for many years, as we strive to provide high-quality homes and community services across the region.

“Following our £200m bond issue we’ve been developing much-needed new affordable homes, but as demand for properties continues to grow, coupled with rising rents, we’ve needed to further extend our services and ambitions across the region.”

Vik Sehgal, associate director from Lloyds Bank social housing team, added: “Having worked closely with emh group on its successful bond issue, we are pleased to extend our support further with this revolving credit facility.

“Through raising finance on the capital markets and using more traditional forms of funding, emh group is a great example of a well-managed housing association dealing adeptly with the unprecedented challenges in the current operating environment.”