Specialist manager and operating partner of alternative real estate
At Woburn we unlock the potential of real estate in operational sectors
ABOUT
Woburn is a privately owned, independent specialist manager and operating partner of operational real estate. It was founded in 2023 and is based in London.
Woburn seeks opportunities to design, build, and structure investments to deliver attractive returns from operationally intensive assets and will invest across the capital structure to provide the best relative value.
Across Core and Value-Add strategies, Woburn’s focus is on student housing, residential, future offices, self-storage and data centres.
PHILOSOPHY
We adopt a disciplined, logical, and thematic approach to investment.
We view property as an ‘enterprise’, aiming to build platforms and enhance value through best-in-class operational leadership.
The team has a highly selective approach to new investments, seeking only to deploy investor capital into assets we believe will outperform through focused asset management.
CREDENTIALS
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Extensive experience investing in and managing across PBSA, Co-Living, BTR, Self-storage & Data Centres
For GCP Student Living, the team set the strategy and oversaw 135 staff who operated the buildings
Experience in navigating complex transaction structures and regulatory requirements
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Assembled a £1.2bn prime PBSA portfolio and delivered 13.9% annualised total return over 8 years to shareholders from a low leverage core strategy
Demonstrable track record of deriving returns from developments, value add opportunities and off market operational schemes
Well positioned to access opportunities from established industry contacts and longstanding relationships
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Experienced team who led the external management of a FTSE 250 Student REIT
Set the strategy and managed the vehicle across sourcing, capital raising, development projects, quarterly listed company reporting, governance, compliance, operations and financial and property risk management
TEAM
Nick Barker
Director
Nick is a Director at Woburn, his responsibilities cover capital raising, investment origination and strategic oversight.
Nick previously led FTSE-250 GCP Student Living Plc for 6 years. Prior to this, Nick was the Head of Alternatives for Schroders Real Estate and a member of the fund management team for the Schroder UK Real Estate Fund. Nick also worked at Cushman & Wakefield and JLL and has over twenty years of investment experience.
Nick is a qualified chartered surveyor.
Joe McDonagh
Director
Joe is a Director at Woburn, his responsibilities cover investment origination, capital raising, structuring and portfolio monitoring.
Prior to Woburn, Joe was an Investment Director at Gravis Capital Management, where he was involved in over £1.7bn of operational real estate transactions. Joe also worked at Grant Thornton where he advised on transactions in the living sector.
Joe is a qualified chartered accountant.
SERVICES
Investment management
Holistic management from inception to sale through:
Launching & structuring funds
Origination, due diligence, and execution of opportunities
Integrated platform creation
Third-party debt origination
Forecasting and valuation
Institutional grade reporting & risk management
Asset management
Leveraging our expertise, we optimise the performance of operational real estate assets to maximise value and profitability through:
Optimisation of operational performance and service levels through active management of operations, development & risk
Unlocking opportunities for value accretive capital expenditure
Advisory
Providing bespoke advisory services to deliver optimal portfolio performance and risk management:
Strategic business planning
Strategic review of current and future business plans
Option analysis to maximise asset / portfolio value