West Melbourne welcomes its first build-to-rent development with the arrival of The Briscoe by Kinleaf

In what City of Melbourne Acting Lord Mayor Nicholas Reece described as a “red letter day” for West Melbourne comes the launch of The Briscoe by Kinleaf, a $150 million build-to-rent (BTR) development from Sentinel Fund Manager Australia (Sentinel Australia).

Sentinel’s president and director of Sentinel Fund Manager Australia, Michael Streicker, was joined by Cr Reece, and its investment partner for the project, Federated Hermes, to mark the opening of the sustainable 172-apartment rental community and recognise Victoria’s growing BTR housing sector.

“As Australia’s largest capital city, it’s essential Melbourne keeps up with demand for attractive build-to-rent offerings, and The Briscoe is doing just that,” Cr Reece said.

“With premium apartments and amenities like a fitness centre and rooftop lounge, all just a stone’s throw from the Melbourne CBD, there’s no doubt that The Briscoe will be a valuable addition to West Melbourne.”

The BTR model creates homes for the rental market, whereby dwellings are owned and maintained by one central landlord, instead of selling to individual buyers.

While BTR development in Australia is still in its infancy, accounting for only 0.6 per cent of rental properties in the country according to Knight Frank’s Breaking the Shackles September report, it is America's second-largest institutional real estate class.

The Briscoe is Sentinel Australia’s third operational BTR apartment community in Australia.

It follows the success of its The Elements by Kinleaf development in Western Australia, which was the very first operational and stabilised institutional BTR in the country and has since fully leased across its two completed phases.

According to Mr Streicker, The Briscoe has delivered a “boost of high-quality rental supply to Melbourne’s housing market at a critical time.”

“It is evident that housing needs and preferences are evolving across Australia and The Briscoe is a great example of how a well-designed BTR product with an experienced operator can fulfill some of the growing demand for housing and offer greater housing choice,” he said.

Sentinel has owned and managed rental housing on a global stage for more than 50 years and we take great pride in bringing our experience to the local market to create positive outcomes for our residents, investors, and the communities in which we operate.

“We look forward to growing our Kinleaf resident community at The Briscoe and at future locations across the country, including in North Melbourne’s expanding Biomedical Precinct where we are currently in planning to deliver another high-quality build-to-rent asset.”

The Briscoe is purpose-built for renters and offers sustainable one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments for rent across its seven floors.

It is professionally managed under Sentinel’s dedicated Australian property management platform, Kinleaf, with management, leasing and maintenance staff located on-site.

The apartment community is pet-friendly and features a curated range of resident amenities including a resident lounge, fitness centre, rooftop lounge with views across the Melbourne skyline and business centre.

The Briscoe draws inspiration from its former use as an iron yard owned by one of Australia’s largest Victorian-era hardware firms, Briscoe & Company Limited. Sections of the building’s heritage façade and art deco signage have been restored throughout the construction process, with original brickwork from the façade also featured inside the completed building.