Rabobank-Backed BPD Fund Acquires 245 Rental Units In Europe’s Largest Timber Housing Project

Dutch residential investment fund BPD Woningfonds has acquired 245 rental units in BoogieWood, a mixed-use, timber-frame housing development in The Hague, from developer-builder VORM for an undisclosed sum.

Along with the 245 units, which have an average floor space of 74 square meters, BPD has acquired 123 parking spaces and a commercial unit.

A rendering of the BoogieWood mixed-use residential scheme in The Hague

Once completed, BoogieWood will deliver a total of 702 rental homes, more than half of which have been earmarked as affordable housing, including 221 social rental units and 141 midrange rental units. 

The ground floors of BoogieWood will offer approximately 11,000 square meters of affordable commercial space.

Designed by OZ Architects in collaboration with De Zwarte Hond, the new development will also include the 110-meter-tall Mercurius Tower.

The residential units are scheduled for completion in the first quarter of 2030. Once completed, BoogieWood will be the largest cross-laminated timber construction project in Europe, according to VORM.

The mixed-use scheme is being built on top of an existing parking garage, which will serve as the building’s foundation while providing 249 parking spaces. By combining timber construction with the existing garage, the 28,000-square-meter residential building will require fewer new materials and produce lower carbon dioxide emissions, according to a press release from VORM. 

The development is in Binckhorst, an industrial district in The Hague that is being redeveloped into a residential and commercial neighborhood. Together with the neighboring Central Innovation District, Binckhorst forms the largest urban construction initiative underway in the Netherlands.

The local municipality aims to build up to 30,000 homes in the area by 2040 to help ease a housing shortage. The first 5,000 homes are under construction, with another 7,500 to 8,000 planned in the near future.

Since it was founded by Rabobank and BPD in late 2019, BPD Woningfonds has built a portfolio of approximately 6,400 apartments and single-family homes within and outside the Randstad. The fund targets the middle-income rental sector and aims to grow its portfolio to 16,500 homes by 2034.

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