Marstead Living, a developer and operator of integrated retirement communities, has secured mortgage finance from Federated Hermes Private Credit, in a deal advised by Deloitte, enabling the purchase completion of an 18-acre site in London’s Mill Hill, in the Borough of Barnet, to create a new 175 home retirement village set in over 10 acres of gardens and landscaped grounds with an estimated GDV of over £260 million.
Marstead Living’s new Mill Hill scheme, known as Marstead Mill, for which full planning permission has been granted and Section 106 agreement signed with London Borough of Barnet and the GLA. This is Marstead Living’s first retirement scheme and marks a pivotal moment for their vision of redefining retirement living in the UK through a high-quality flagship project and addressing the needs of right-sizers in a drastically underserved sector. There is a significant undersupply of retirement housing in the district surrounding the Marstead Mill project.
Located on two adjoining sites, formerly known as Watchtower House, the Jehovah’s Witness International Bible Students’ Association UK headquarters, Marstead Mill will offer 175 generously sized one, two and three bedroom apartments specifically designed for residents aged 65 and above. Construction is set to commence before the end of the year, with full completion expected in 2027.
Designed to create an outstanding lifestyle for its residents, the new retirement village on the main site will provide eight apartment buildings nestled within beautiful mature gardens and trees along with one additional residential building on the adjacent site comprising nine affordable family homes for the local community and Londoners. The neighbouring site will be opened for the wider community to use and enjoy and will include a community centre, park café and a 7-acre public green open space.
The scheme has been designed by Barr Gazetas Architects to integrate the buildings into the landscape, retaining much of the gardens and mature planting, whilst reducing the built footprint on site through the removal of the former Jehovah’s Witness complex and tarmacked parking areas.
Designed to be an exemplar retirement community, Marstead Mill will feature a wealth of lifestyle amenities including a residents’ lounge, concierge, restaurant, deli/café open for the wider local community, social/games rooms and a health and wellbeing facilities including a swimming pool, hydrotherapy pool, fitness suite and treatment rooms and a garden pavilion.
The project is committed to sustainability and social values, focusing on energy strategy targeting net-zero carbon plan and renewables, planting 175 new trees, as well as increasing green space and enhancing biodiversity.
Marstead Mill will stand as a trailblazer in the realm of retirement living communities. Rather than offering residents the usual retirement real estate product, Marstead Living will be pioneering the use of a ‘Righthold’ tenure in the UK, with residents buying a lifestyle product instead of just bricks and mortar. The lifestyle model is already proven to work well and is the predominant model elsewhere around the world including New Zealand, Australia and the USA.
The loan provided by Federated Hermes Private Credit solidifies Marstead Living’s commitment to realising their ambitious project. This strategic decision underscores the confidence both parties have in the success and sustainability of this new retirement community and lifestyle offering.