Hearthstone to launch UK residential property fund

Hearthstone Investments is launching a property fund early next year seeking to track price moves in the UK residential market.

Christopher Down, the Hearthstone chief executive, says the fund will be diversified across various property types. It will allocate its assets in line with the aggregate value of properties in 10 regions in the UK, with about half its investments in London and the south east.  

"There are relatively few residential funds already in the market due to a combination of stamp duty liabilities on portfolio transfers, lack of tax-efficient holding structures and the relatively recent emergence of large-scale property management businesses," Down says.

Hearthstone's ungeared fund will be managed by David Gibbins, who was responsible for various residential property vehicles while at Morley Fund Management, now Aviva Investors.

He will invest about 80% of the Hearthstone vehicle in bricks and mortar, mainly from the open market, but Down says he has also discussed buying some properties owned and refurbished by banks.