Yorkshire homebuilder acquires major site in Leeds to deliver new family-oriented neighbourhood

The deal will see Casa take ownership of the 2.4-hectare development for a new development named Casa, Abbey Court. Casa by Moda is the single-family homes arm of developer and operator Moda Living.

Matt Townson, director of development and projects at Casa by Moda, said: “We’re entering an exciting phase with the delivery of our first neighbourhoods, and as a business headquartered in Yorkshire, Casa, Abbey Court is special for us, as it marks our first neighbourhood that will open in our home region.

“With demand for rental accommodation remaining high, our approach as a long-term owner and operator is to create not only high quality, sustainable homes, but new communities that go beyond bricks and mortar by actively supporting the wellbeing of our residents.

“Casa, Abbey Court marks a step change in single family rental in Leeds by being able to offer residents leases of up to three years, something unheard of in the traditional rental market. During the current periods of economic uncertainty, we believe it’s important to be able to provide our residents a security of tenancy that can only come from our long-term approach.”

Mr Townson added that looking forward, the firm has “ambitious” plans to collaborate with sustainable housebuilders like Artisan, as well as local authorities and landowners to deliver more new homes across the UK. The company also has a target of securing 5,000 new homes by 2025.

Following the purchase, Casa will work with Artisan to complete the delivery of the new homes. This will include embedding Moda’s technology partner Utopi’s smart environmental sensors into the homes, which enable residents to monitor room temperature, air quality and light pollution. The homes will also feature air source heat pumps.

The acquisition comes in the wake of Casa announcing its first neighbourhood and the first ever single-family product in Glasgow, now known as Casa, Vista Park. The firm is working with CCG Homes to develop 156 new rental homes in the city.

With Casa, Abbey Court, the brand is seeking to continue to drive growth in the UK single family rental market. The single family rental market sees developers own and operate neighbourhoods in suburban areas, as opposed to the traditional city centre locations which are associated with build to rent, and operated by land lords.

Artisan originally acquired the site in March 2021 and started development later that year.

James Bulmer, regional director for Leeds-based Artisan Real Estate North said: “The collaboration with Casa by Moda provides a significant opportunity to deliver much needed new homes for rent in one of Leeds’ most desirable suburbs.

“There is a growing demand for high-quality, family rental properties, and Casa has a proven operational model designed specifically to meet the needs of today’s rental market.

"Collaborative partnerships with successful rental platforms such as Casa will form the perfect development model to provide the mix of tenure that is required by today’s housing market.”